= = = = = Chapter #3 = = = = =

	Chris lead us to Gryphon's a couple street blocks away before pointing me in the direction of Midtown's Town Hall and departing for his shop.  Watching him walk away I found myself wanting to like the man, but I just couldn't.  His initial reaction to Tommi still rattled inside my gut.  And as for his background....

	Gryphon's turned out to be a food convenience shop with a not-so-small section of the store set aside specifically for sweets.  After carefully making sure Tommi understood he could only pick two things, with no tasting, I turned him loose.  Between three other customers and the two employees nobody said anything the whole time we were there.  Again, it didn't take being a psychic to know some of what they were thinking.

	That's right, folks, the circus is in.

	Leaving the store I took us further into town, which wasn't any bigger then I'd expected it to be, until I finally spotted the Town Hall.  Much to my relief there was only the single receptionist in the main lobby, as neither Tommi nor I enjoyed crowded places.  Putting on my best 'I'm a poor lost tourist' look I went on up and introduced myself.  "Excuse me, my name is Samual Karish.  I've just arrived here and was hoping someone could help me out a bit.  I need to find a place to stay, among other things."

	Peering over her desk at Tommi the woman ...Liz... slowly nodded and said, "Just a moment while I get Mr. Greer," and quickly disappeared into the back.  A minute later she returned with an older gentleman in tow who gave a short but very formal bow and asked, "Good morning, Miss.  My name is Jim Greer.  How can I help you?"

	"Good day Mr. Greer.  I've just arrived early this morning and am needing help in finding a place to stay."

	Flickering his eyes towards Tommi he smiled at me and said, "Of course.  Please follow me and I'll see what we can do."  Giving Liz one last meaningful look he then escorted us into a small office and closed the door behind us.  Hearing a faint double click as the latch caught I sincerely hoped Mr. Greer was about to make a simple and common mistake, instead of an exceptionally stupid one.

	He waited until Tommi and I had taken our seats before asking, "Welcome to Chalion, Miss.  Might I see your ID card please?"

	Fishing out the card in question I handed it over, watching him as he briefly read the name before placing the card on his desk just outside of my reach.  "Miss Karish, please excuse my informality, but are you aware that it is illegal to own a Graft here on Berenik?"

	With that I breathed a small sigh of relief as indeed, he had just made the most common mistake government officials usual do when first meeting Tommi.  I then wondered how long before one of the constables, that Liz was probably calling right at this moment, arrived to try and arrest me.  "Mr. Greer, this is Tommi Karish, my legally adopted son."  Tommi looked at me in question as I said his name, and I took a second to ruffle his hair a bit.  Then smiling I brightly added, "If you would like to you can call the new Judge.  I am sure she would be more then happy to run a check on me."

	He managed to not quite frown before his face returned to that official placating smile.  "New Judge?  And who might that be, Miss Karish?"

	"Samual Karish."

	I kept smiling at him, enjoying the moment just a little too much, as his calm features finally broke.  Picking up my ID card again he then turned towards his monitor and scanned it, frowned some more, and then glanced at me again before initiating a comm call.  Placing a hand on Tommi's shoulder as he started to get antsy we waited, and after several tones a tired, but familiar, voice answered it.  "What?"

	"Excuse me, Judge Killian, this is Jim Greer calling from Midtown Chalion Town Hall.  I have a Miss Karish here...."

	"Yes, what of it?"

	"Um, Miss Karish here claims that-"

	"I would imagine she is claiming a lot of things, right about now.  Okay Jim, let me make this real simple for you.  Yes, yes, and yes.  Yes, she is Chalion's new Judge, congratulations for you all, that's one down and three to go.  Yes, she has a son, and I have already independently confirmed the legality of the adoption.  Yes, he's a felinoid Graft, and that is her problem, not yours.  And in closing, yes, nobody was properly informed that she was coming, not even me, but I am happy to say that that is now your problem, not mine.  I'll send over what I have later.  Now, be a good chap and make sure everyone else knows about this too, will you?  I really don't want to have this conversation more then once a day.  Will that be all?  Yes?  Good.  Have a nice day."

	The connection died with an interesting tone of finality.

	I kept smiling.

	"So, um, Judge Karish..."  Jim took a moment to organized his desk before remembering to hand me back my ID card, and then smiled again, a bit weakly this time.

	Yep, entirely too much fun.  "Mr. Greer, I was wondering, when should the constables that you asked Liz to call be arriving?"

	With a curse the man jumped out of his chair and ran to the door, found it still locked, cursed again as he rushed back to his terminal and entered an override code, and then rushed back out through the now unlocked door.  Deciding that the whole encounter was likely to be the highlight of my day I gave Tommi one of the pieces of candy he'd picked out.  Cheerfulness should be shared, after all.

	A couple minutes later a much more composed Mr. Greer returned, and after sitting he politely asked, "So, Judge Karish, you were inquiring about a residence?"

	"Yes, I was.  Preferably something inexpensive, as I haven't been informed of how much I'm getting paid yet."

	"You haven't?"  The man looked positively shocked.

	Wondering how often I was going to have to repeat this I explained, "Mr. Greer, twelve hours ago I was in low orbit aboard the Military Battleship Crusader, and the idea of spending time down here hadn't even entered my mind.  My orders were given to me AFTER they had already tossed my few worldly possessions, along with my son, out an airlock and into the nearest shuttle.  Besides Judge Killian himself, who mostly just grumbled at me for interrupting his sleep, you are first government official I have spoken to, and I was REALLY hoping you could help me out.  But first," and I raised a finger in punctuation, "we really need a place to sleep."

	He blinked at me a couple times before proceeding to get very busy with his terminal.  "Well, there are several affordable places for rent in Uptown-"

	"Midtown."

	He turned back to the terminal.

	"Preferably outside of town, but within walking distance... say two or three kilometers.  And it doesn't have to be big, one or two beds would suffice."

	His typing took on a more frantic pace before he stopped, apparently having found an acceptable possibility, but his comm started chiming just as he opened his mouth to say something.  With a frustrated sigh he stabbed the answer button and said, "Jim Greer speaking."  The voice that replied was older, arrogant, and annoyed.  "Jim, this is Mayor Zobel.  I'm looking for a Samuel Karish, our new Judge.  Do you know where she is?"

	Leaning forward in my chair I caught Jim's eye, then pointed at the comm unit and myself to which he rolled his eyes and nodded.  Giving him an impish grin I said aloud, "Hello Mayor, I'm right here.  Is there something you need?"  There was a heavy silence, and then, "Judge... Karish, as Mayor of Chalion I wish to welcome you to our lovely island, and I look forward to working with you.  With your presence here I feel that the people of Chalion will finally be getting the prompt legal assistance that they so rightly deserve as members of a civilized world.  Unfortunately, due to a lack of foresight official paperwork on your new assignment has not yet reached proper authorities here, and I am concerned that you may experience some difficulties in transitioning into your duties.  In addition, due to your precipitous arrival from Ministry I am certain that you are unaware of the intricacies of how things are managed here.  Given all that, I was hoping to speak with you in person to help expedite the process as well as lend you my experience in important local matters."

	I think my jaw dropped as I stared at the comm.  The man was oozing pompous self-appointed authority by the tank full.  I would have burst out in laughter if it hadn't taken me so completely by surprise. Before I could even formulate a suitable response, however, the comm chimed again announcing a second call and lunging forward Jim snapped out a "Just a moment, Mayor, I have a second call coming in" and put the man on hold.  With a groan he then opened the second line.

	"Hey Jim, this is Tam at Port.  I've got a scuffle here and when I called Judge Killian he told me to call you."

	Glancing at me in question he answered, "Constable Tran, I'm here with Chalion's new Judge, Samuel Karish.  Uh, effective as of this morning."

	"Really?  Okay.  I've got a Captain Zimmer asking for summary judgment on an assault charge with Karl Fremil.  When can you get here Judge?"  Glancing at Jim I shrugged and said, "As soon as I can find a ride I guess."  Seeing Jim's jaw drop I muttered "Out the airlock with three minutes notice.  Remember?" and a slightly pained expression crossed his face.  With another deep sigh Jim then stated, "I'll have her there in twenty minutes, Tam.  Can you sit on things that long?"

	"Sure.  Take you time.  This is Karl we're talking about, after all."

	With a "We'll meet you out front" I stood, taking Tommi's hand, and left the office for the lobby where a very sheepish looking Liz was trying very hard to look busy and not notice us.  Normally I wouldn't have hesitated to poked a bit of fun at her, but honestly she had only been doing her job.

	Jim must have talked fast with the Mayor, and taken a different exit, because we'd only been standing out in the cold for about two minutes before a small skimmer with Ministry markings pulled up with him behind the controls.  It took another minute getting Tommi situated in the back seat before we could leave, but Jim pushed the speed a bit and we reached the end of town a heck of a lot faster than I'd walked in earlier.  Figuring I might as well get on to business I settled in and asked, "How well do you know Constable Tran?"

	He shrugged.  "Tam's been here over twenty years now, longer then me.  Senior Constable.  He's dependable, efficient, gets the job done, but has a good feel for when not to... ah, take things too seriously."

	I nodded, mentally filing it away.  "And Karl?  From the sounds of things this isn't the first scuffle he's been in."

	Getting an "Hmm" I glanced at Jim, who was now looking a tad resigned.  "Karl runs a small cargo delivery company out of Port, does pretty well.  A good guy, one of those that helps the neighbors when in need, that kind of thing.  A real honest sort.  He just... takes things about his wife a bit too personally."  Wondering how the man's wife fit in, and knowing that something was getting left out, I pushed, "This relates how?"  When the following silence stretched out I looked over and noticed the man actually blushing, and in pity took a quick listen at the most surface of his thoughts.  Then I burst out laughing.

	Once the moment passed I tactfully commented, "Well, based off of the redness of your ears I would theorize that she's either stacked beyond all measure, one of those real 'friendly' people that drives their spouses to distraction, or a courtesan.  Am I close?"  Apparently she was all three, but I wasn't about to tell Jim that I now already knew.  For a moment it looked like he was going to burst something in embarrassment, but he finally muttered, "A courtesan."  To my "Is she licensed?" he blinked a moment in surprise and answered, "Yes, actually.  Probably the only one that is within ten islands."  Then hastily added, "From what I've heard."

	I smiled.  "Of course."  I was mildly surprised he didn't get a nose bleed from all that blood rushing right back up again.

	We actually managed to reach Port about when he said we would, and spotted the red constable flashers almost immediately in one of the loading docks.  Climbing out of the skimmer I glanced at the only three people present and discovered that no introductions were needed as it was pretty obvious who was who just by looking at them.

	Constable Tran was tall, lean, and had that worn leather look of a person who's spent a lifetime working outdoors.  He was standing between the other two with a relaxed, but curious, air about him and waved to Jim in greetings as he approached.  Karl, currently sitting on the front bumper of Tam's skimmer was more of an average height, though he had that seriously muscled physique that was common of many cargo handlers.  He looked both mad and embarrassed with his hands held behind his back in a pair of quick zip restraints.  Nope, not a happy man there.

	Captain Zimmer, in his company dress uniform, was looking oddly smug standing on the other side of Tam while sporting a bloody nose and black eye that would have almost done a holo entertainment special effects make-up artist proud.  He'd obviously been punched, and hard, but the overall pleased vibe I was picking up from him did not fit.  I spent a minute leaning into the back seat soothing Tommi, who was starting to display the warning signs of a screaming 'I want a quite, familiar place' tantrum, while simultaneously using my vest to initiate a passive scan of the area via the neural implant at the base of my skull.  Sure enough I got a few hits, and it took only a moment to weed through them to find a Port security video recorder that was pointed in this direction.  Another second and I by-passed the rather feeble encoded locks to review its memory.  Taking a second peek at the man I finally noticed his Military service tab, and everything suddenly made sense.

	And I didn't even have to read someone's mind.

	After giving Tommi a final hug, the second piece of candy, and a promise that we were almost done, I wandered on over where the four men were waiting.  Giving Tam a quick nod in greetings I announced, "Greetings gentlemen, my name is Judge Samuel Karish.  I am here to pronounce summary judgment on an incident of physical assault involving" ...Gregory... "Gregory Zimmer and Karl Framil.  I would like to remind everyone present that this is being recorded for the official record."  I waited a moment to see if anyone had anything to add, and then continued.  "Constable Tram, what is standard penalty here for a first time physical assault offense?"

	Eyeing me speculatively Tam replied, "A first time offense usually warrants a fine of two to five hundred credits, plus medical expenses and moderate financial compensation to the injured party as the Judge sees fit.  Accompanying cell time can run eight to twenty four hours, depending on if people need to sober up or cool off."

	Turning to Karl I gave him a hard stare to which he flinched, though I thought it more likely due to the man being thoroughly hen-pecked than me being all that intimidating, and asked him, "You sober?"

	"Yes, Judge."

	"Cooled off yet?"

	"Yes, Judge."

	"You a first time offender, Karl?"

	I watched the man's eyes fall, and a bit quieter he answered, "No, Judge."

	I smiled.  The man looked to have a temper, but also knew when he'd gone too far, and was willing to be honest about his prior 'scuffles'.  That counted for something.  "Okay people, listen up, Summary Judgment as follows.  Constable Tram, I want you to take those zips off of Mr. Framil here, and then escort Captain Zimmer to the Port infirmary to get patched up along with a general physical, so that we can be sure he suffered no other injuries, and give the bill to Ministry Official Jim Greer."  Jim started, obviously surprised to be included in this.  "Mr. Greer, I temporarily empower you to audit the financial books of Mr. Framil's private business and calculate its gross profits from the last five days, to which he will be fined for that amount."  A wince of pain passed Karl's face, but he kept his silence.  "With those monies you are directed to settle the before mentioned medical bill.  Should any funds remain they are to be donated to a planetary charity of your choice, courtesy of the Island of Chalion.  Mr. Framil, should he so desire, may voice a recommendation as long as he understands that it will only be that."  Fairly pleased with myself, I awaited the explosion.

	"Hey now, just a minute!"

	Turning towards Captain Zimmer I politely asked, "Is there a problem, Captain?"

	"What about my compensation?!"

	"There won't be any.  By my not mentioning one, I had thought that was clear."

	"But I was assaulted without cause, and demand compensation!  Teach the little piss-ant a lesson about messing with his betters."

	"Captain Zimmer, my Summary Judgment stands.  If you feel that justice has not been served, then you are more than welcome to request an appeal with a Judge of higher authority.  However, should you consider that, I think I should point out a few things beforehand."  Casually walking over to him I stated, "First, I happen to know that the Judge who will be hearing your appeal is seriously overworked, and an appeal is not done on a summary basis, so therefore you will have to remain here on Chalion until it is completed.  Can you wait that long, Captain, with a delivery schedule to make?"

	"Second, on the building behind you, about ten meters up, is a security video recorder, which did catch the incident in question."  Everyone turned to look, except Gregory, who was now glaring down at me.  "I have already reviewed its memory, and one moment puzzles me a bit.  After the two of you yelled at each other, Karl turned to walk away... and then you said something, and he socked you for it.  I wonder what that was?"

	I then reached out with my left hand, a deliberate gesture that drew attention to the fact that it was wasn't flesh and bone, and ripped the service tag right off of his uniform.  "And third, this tells me you spent twenty years in Military flying tin cans, and in my own personal experience no Eagle with that much time in the service would ever just stand there like an idiot and let a man punch him.  Especially when the man telegraphs his moves that badly."  Dropping the tag on the ground I sadly shook my head.  "No, Captain Zimmer, this has every earmark of a person picking a fight for a reason, and I refuse to hand out a cash reward just because he succeeded.  Mr. Framil should have walked away.  He didn't and he will be punished for it, but that's where it ends."

	I smiled.  It was a nasty and mean smile, but at that point I didn't care.  The glaring match didn't even last long, before he ripped his gaze away with a snarl and stomped off.  Turning towards Tam I muttered, "Make sure he gets that physical" and then took a deep breath, trying to purge the ugly emotions before Tommi started picking up on them.

	"Jim?"

	"Yes, Judge?"

	"Please find us a place to stay, before my son as a nervous meltdown and rips all the padding out of the back of your vehicle."

	Looking to his skimmer in alarm he exclaimed, "Seriously?!"

	"Yes, and with the way I'm feeling right now, I just might help him."

	We departed shortly afterward.