<At this time, we recommend relying on the Russian A-135 response, which can be encouraged and directed by Agent Mikhail Kovalenko. If, for some reason, we are unable to goad the Russians into responding with enough of its Gorgon missile armament, or if the missiles prove ineffective, only then do we recommend using our laser weaponry to destroy the errant missiles, and rely on disinformation from each of you to stop any unwelcome inquiries into the fate of the missiles within your respective countries’ governments.>

<Does the Council agree with the analysis as we have presented it?>

The seven people around the room nodded their assent. It was the most danger they had been in since the King’s Transom had discovered one of their capsules off India, and no one in the room felt the need to have their voice heard in connection with such an unprecedented risk to the mission. Several among them had already begun thinking of how they would make sure any blame for problems arising from the incident were placed firmly at Agent Shahim’s feet, but bar that they were happy for the AI to take the lead here.

The AI recorded their assent and moved on to the job of finding the missing Agent, listing its three options for doing so.

<In order to locate Agent Shahim Al Khazar, we have three potential options. As you all know, your bodies were specifically designed without any active locator beacons in order to avoid the chance that their signals would be picked up by the humans. Because of this, we have relied on the small subspace tweeters built into your human analogs, and the larger relays you were equipped with to maintain contact with you. Shahim is not currently near his relay and therefore we cannot pick up signals from him and discover his current status.>

<Shahim was last seen in a firefight with three Pakistani tanks in the middle of the base. After disabling them, he entered a building nearby and we have not been able to positively identify him since. The Pakistani army has already dispatched two large forces to converge on the base and retake it, though there are, in fact, very few insurgents still alive there.>

<As you all know, three of you are currently in the same region as Agent Shahim. Agent Raz Shellet in Tel Aviv, Agent Preeti Parikh in New Delhi, and Agent Jean-Paul Merard currently stationed in Afghanistan with the Eighty-Second Fighter Wing of the French Air Force.>

<We believe that with the region on high alert, it would be very difficult for any Israeli to leave that country on short notice and make it across Iran and Afghanistan to Peshawar. Though Agent Merard in Afghanistan is closest to Shahim, his body analog is what the human’s term Caucasian, and we believe that would make it equally challenging for him to covertly gain access to Peshawar Base at this time.>