Pirate King Ray – I did feel that the show missed an opportunity to make Adam more nuanced and one reasons for this story was to give him a backstory. Also while romance is unlikely to be a strength of my writing, I wanted to make the fact of him and Blake being together believable.
Merendinoemiliano – thanks for the comments. For a story by a fairly new writer and which does not feature the traditionally most popular characters, constructive criticism and letting me know which aspects work is very helpful.
There is a thought attributed to Adam here which I am certain I have borrowed from another story featuring Adam. I cannot remember which one although I suspect it is one of Coeur Al'Aran's.
Ilia was grooming Julie's tail and hair. They were going on the town tonight with the aim of remaking the acquaintance of Beige and his lap scroll. Blake would not be joining them. There were various reasons for this, and Julie and Ilia were discussing these.
Ilia said, "I suppose Blake is starting to look like her mother and with the SDC saying that Crimson was assassinated by us, they may be rather more alert than normal."
"It is true that they are also more likely to be interested in Adam's girlfriend than you or I." replied Julie. She paused and continued "Also we are going to have to delay slipping him the Mickey Finn and being honest we may not be able to at all. Adam is not prepared for Blake to do what he expects us to do."
"Why do you think we may have to go through with it?"
"It is a little suspicious if a man can't remember what happened the night before on two separate occasions with the same girls. We also need to leave open the possibility of a third meeting at which we kidnap him. I will encourage him to drink too much, and my guess is that he will have a head start on us."
Ilia nodded, "According to the observers, the SDC team were congratulating him as they left the embassy and they have booked a table at the Ivy. My guess is that he will then move on from there to a night club. His favourite according to the files we copied is a place called Rick's. Their best guess is that he will finish eating by 10. If he goes somewhere else then we will join him there, but it will be less suspicious if he finds us already there bopping the night away."
"I trust you will do the talking." Ilia was conscious that she did not find flirting easy, while Julie regarded it as an important life skill.
"Understood. We need you to do the hacking otherwise I would have fought harder to take Blake with us. Her standoffishness is curiously attractive to the tail chasers." Another pause, "Still that bruise on the upper arm would have been awkward."
"Blake says that he did not mean it. He just gripped her harder than he meant to when Perry told him that someone had killed Crimson and had blamed it on us."
"Hmmm. He should be more aware of his own strength."
Ilia nodded. This was a discussion which they had had before. Julie was very firm on the issue and normally Adam supported the principle that women members of the White Fang should not be ill treated. However, Julie considered that he was a little too ready to forgive bad behaviour, particularly in relation to Bruno. Ilia was torn. She admired Adam and shared his hatred of human hypocrisy and cruelty. On the other hand, she adored Blake and seeing her injured upset Ilia enormously. She had initially felt guilty when she took comfort with Julie, but the Fox Faunus claimed that it suited her for Ilia not to be besotted with her and told her not to feel guilty about things.
Ilia wondered again about what had caused Julie to join the White Fang. Adam said that for everyone in his team there had been one thing which meant that they could no longer put up with how they were treated anymore. Adam's seemed obvious, but Blake said that it had not so much been the branding. What had cemented his hatred of humans was the refusal to believe his story. In Ilia's case, it had been the sound of her classmates mocking her as she grieved the loss of her parents – that the fact she was a Faunus meant her feelings did not matter. Julie said that she did not want to be a victim or define herself by what humans had done to her and refused to talk about her past, the small scar on her back or the slight kink in her tail. There was one thing which Ilia wondered about. Last year they had been in Mistral when the news lead on a story about a hitchhiking Faunus who had attacked a human who had given her a lift and left him for dead by the roadside. The pig Faunus instead of being frightened or penitent had turned round as the human was wheeled into court and mocked him while claiming the attack had been in self-defence. Julie had burst into hysterical laughter and still used variants of the taunt on a regular basis. Ilia wondered what had happened to the pig Faunus - she had only been fourteen but the talking heads on the news channels had demanded she be tried as an adult.
In comparison, Blake's motivation was intellectual. Nothing had been done to her personally, but she responded to what had happened to others and to Faunus in general. She loved Adam, but unlike the rest of them felt able to debate with him.
She checked the time again, looked at Julie and said "Showtime."
/-/
Marrow was seated in the back of a limousine with blacked out windows next to Clover. They were parked in the car park of Rick's and were listening to the bug which had been placed on Corkran. It had taken some time for Marrow to appreciate the subtlety of the Ambassador's and Corkran's plan, He still thought it was too clever for its own good, but tonight would tell. In any event it had been an interesting few days.
Originally after he had arrived back with the Ace-Ops, the Captain had called him into see her and said that he was bring seconded to the Ambassador for a few days along with Mr Corkran. He was then sent off in a jeep to the Embassy wearing dress uniform and with a suitcase concerning his usual uniform and civilian clothes. He was ushered into the ambassador's room when he arrived. The ambassador announced that he now wanted to investigate the attack on himself and discover who was behind it. Apparently Corkran had recognised a few of the people who had been involved in the attack. Admittedly these were either corpses or presumed eaten by Ziraph, but he knew who their associates where. He was also aware of who they worked for and could guess at some of the connections. Nothing which constituted legal proof of course, but that was not the point. Anyway, there were three names who were not known to be dead whom he suggested targeting. Apparently Corkran was currently starting a process which it was hoped would force them into the open.
He was then then taken into a conference room where he and the ambassador met with two members of the Embassy intelligence staff. The ambassador announced that the military had brought evidence to his attention that the attack on the patrol may not have been bandits but linked to the multi-kingdoms and the Vacuo underworld. He hoped that these rumours were unfounded but had pledged to give the military his full assistance. The ambassador named two names he said that he had been given who were considered to be persons of interest. The intelligence people claimed to be surprised at the accusation, but one of them admitted that he had heard of the people in question. Both said that they would check their contacts and report back to Marrow and the Ambassador. Marrow noted that only one of the names mentioned had been on the Corkran list. The intelligence operatives left, and the ambassador put a finger to his lips and handed Marrow a note with an address of a pub on and a note to change into civilian garb before going there.
Marrow had changed into civilian clothes at the barracks in Vacuo City and went to the pub and saw that Corkran was at a table talking to a tall, burly man. Corkran nodded at him but did not invite Marrow to join them. A few minutes later the man got up, shook Corkran's hand and departed. Corkran gestured with his ears for Marrow to join them.
"You may be wondering what on Remnant our distinguished fellow Grimm hunter is up t', old bean. By the way during the next few days it may help if you call me Corky in public."
"Yes, I am rather, Corky."
"The scheme is t' get one of the people to voluntarily surrender t' either you or me for their own safety. You will ostensibly be seeking to arrest and interrogate them with a view t' putting them on trial and I will be offering them entry into the witness protection programme on the basis that they simply name names and do not testify. The idea is that you represent the straight bat side of the military who want t' reveal the truth while I am working for the faction who wants t' keep things hush-hush but make certain the people who organised the attempted assassination get what is coming t' them. The ambassador believes that at least some of his intelligence operatives consider that protecting the interests of the multi-kingdoms is the same as protecting the interests of Atlas. Not necessarily corrupt, but not our allies in this mission."
"What do you expect to happen next?"
"Within 24 hours one and maybe both of the people who the ambassador mentioned at the meeting with the I-men will be found dead. In the meantime, you and I will see some of my contacts. You are t' appear the enthusiastic and earnest young officer trying t' do the right thing, which I trust will not stretch your acting talents. We will discuss recent developments and you will tell them that the Atlas military are interested in contacting a few named individuals and would be prepared to pay a reward for information leading to their apprehension or voluntary surrender. You will then excuse yourself t' make or take a call or even use the facilities. I will, depending on my reading of the other person's gullibility, either ask t' see them later or make the counter offer straight away."
"Do you think this will work? It sounds suspicious to me."
"Normally I would agree with you. However, things are abnormal especially after the death of Samson and the fact that the multi-kingdoms have gone into headless chicken mode since Beamish's inspection trip. I went on the rounds last night and ended up discussing the disappearances in the underworld in recent weeks with some friends and contacts. There was some speculation as to who was dead and who was lying low. When the death of Bruce Crimson was brought up, it was concluded that there would be few mourners. I encouraged speculation that the SDC and other multi-kingdoms were burying the bodies in acid and that they were looking for some of the middlemen who had dealt with Sampson and his friends in the other Multi-kingdoms in relation t' a recent hunting party. I did not even have t' claim that it was a rumour I had heard elsewhere, just nod and say that it sounded plausible."
"Would it help if I mentioned that the Ace-Ops are in Vacuo?"
"Are those the allegedly elite troops who work directly for General Ironwood?"
"They are the real thing, but otherwise yes."
"It will help concentrate minds. Certainly, it may make surrendering t' you or me a more attractive option." The Lynx Faunus had looked as though he was considering other options.
They had spent the rest of the day doing as had been suggested. As the evening progressed, the suggestion that the criminals may want to come in for their own safety was stressed further. At ten Corkran suggested that Marrow go to bed while he circled back among some of the earlier contacts to elaborate on the counteroffer.
The next morning when he met the Ambassador it was disclosed that both names given to the intelligence men were now dead and a few others besides. These included one of the people he had met yesterday. Professor Theodore had also announced that in response to the recent increase in the levels of Grimm activity, Shade Academy would be stepping up patrols around the city. The dead did not include the other two names which Corkran had suggested hunting for.
There were a few more meetings with contacts which Marrow attended by himself. Corkran had excused himself saying that he had other leads to pursue. Around lunchtime, he received a scroll message from Marrow saying that he should meet at the embassy and that he should be ready to use his semblance at short notice as he was as they had previously discussed being followed. Marrow tried to recall the training he had received in surveillance and counter-surveillance and tried to recall discussing being followed. A second message appeared "Your followers have followers. One of them is green."
Marrow both relaxed and worried at the same time. Having the Ace-Ops presumably protecting him was a relief, but why were they here? He turned into the embassy and ignored the sounds of scuffles behind him.
He had then attended a meeting with the Ambassador and Clover Ebi.
The ambassador said "Lieutenant, Specialist, I believe that you know each other already. General Ironwood has agreed that the Ace-Ops will assist you in your mission over the next few days. I have asked the Intelligence unit t' cease their activities before more suspects die before we can reach them. However, I think that I have achieved one of my secondary goals in determining which of them I can't trust at all and which are reclaimable."
Clover said, "We have detained three people who were following you, Lieutenant. One of them is claiming to be a member of the embassy staff."
"Lieutenant, Specialist, who do you recommend should interrogate them? Also, can we hold them?"
Clover replied "Suspicion of terrorism against Atlas allows us to hold them for five days. We have probable cause as they were following the Lieutenant around for over two hours this morning while he was investigating a possible assassination attempt against you. We can call it suspected kidnapping if you prefer. I would suggest calling in my uncle if Colonel White will agree to it."
"Let's have it in the alternative for now. I see no problem in obtaining Colonel White's agreement to bringing in RSM Ebi, especially as the recommendation comes from General Ironwood's representative in Vacuo. I will make the call immediately following this meeting."
He turned to Marrow and said "Good work, Lieutenant. Detaching Corkran so that he could cover your back and confirm your suspicions that the mission was been sabotaged was excellent work. I will let your superiors know."
Clover said, "I agree."
Marrow nodded. He may be naïve, but he knew that when undeserved praise came your direction, you should accept it. However, he wished he knew what Corkran was up to.
He returned with Clover to the barracks where the three prisoners had been detained. The rest of the ace-Ops were there along with Corkran.
"Salutations, old bean. Two of your followers work for a group which does security work for Atlas Gold and the Mistral Dust Company. The third I do not know." Marrow could see that the Ace-ops were a little perplexed by the Faunus with the posh accent and that Harriet in particular had assumed that he was extracting the urine.
Clover said "I presume you are Mr. Corkran. Ace-Ops, please read his file and pay particular attention to the footnotes. I presume that we should assume that everyone who is important knows what Lieutenant Amin's mission is. Is that a problem?"
"One of the people who died last night was someone I spoke to yesterday. It may affect people's willingness to talk to me."
"Perhaps. However, I suggest you revisit your other contacts. They have your scroll number if they want to contact you?"
"Of course, Sir."
Corkran intervened, "Sir, I think your prisoners suggest t' me that there is another possible person of interest. I know a friend of his who may be able t' contact him. He is mid-ranking so is vulnerable t' being thrown to the Grimm. He may be capable of being panicked into thinking witness protection is his best option and may allow him t' return after the dust has settled. He has a sister who we would probably need t' help escape as well."
After some discussion, it was agreed that this was the best course of action. It was also agreed that no one apart from the six of them should know the identity of the target. It was also agreed that the other targets should also be pursued. Both he and Corkran were wired for sound. The Ace-Ops had access to the best surveillance devices which had been developed by the late Doctor Watts. They also had acquired a van which they used to monitor the conversations.
Marrow returned around eight. The contacts he could speak to said that they had heard nothing and had not seen the people in question and said in effect don't call us, we'll call you. Two avoided speaking to him altogether. Clover sent him to the van to and joined Harriet and Elm who was listening to Corkran. Elm suggested that Harriet should get some rest and that Marrow could take her place.
She said "I do not know whether he is excellent or appalling at undercover work. I do see that is particularly good at winding up Harriet.
Corkran was apparently on a club crawl where he was encouraging people to talk about recent events. It was fascinating to Marrow how the rumour mill worked. It appeared that everyone believed that the multi-kingdoms had tried to kill the ambassador, but most believed that the multi-kingdoms, the low-ranking survivors, and most of the Atlas Military wanted to kill the people who knew who had ordered the attack. There were occasional bouts of karaoke. Finally at around 12.30 a useful conversation was had in a toilet.
Corkran was saying "James, could you let Frank know that if he would like to take a long holiday and talk confidentially to my pragmatic friends in the north then we will look after him and Joan. He will not have to undertake public speaking. I do not believe that the climate in Vacuo is currently good for his health. Here is my number."
"If I see him, Corky, I will pass the message on. Knowing him, he will want to speak about the holiday first and will want to do so in a public place."
The next morning, they heard that the two other people they had been looking for were dead and that another of the people who had been approached was also dead. The level of reports of Grimm had also increased. Various other people had left on unplanned holidays to Mistral. The two Vacuoan prisoners were saying little so far, while the embassy prisoner was singing like a bird. Apparently various members of the embassy team were packing tehri bags and either resigning or being reassigned.
Corkran had explained to Marrow that he had thought it more likely that the reports of following would be taken seriously if they were seen to originate with Marrow and besides which Marrow had more use for kudos than Corkran. He also said that the Ambassador had decided that the Ace-Ops were worth adding to the hunters as they had no prior links to Vacuo and primary allegiance was to Ironwood's view of the good of Atlas.
This afternoon a message had been received that Frank was interested in meeting Corky at Rick's nightclub at some time between 8 and 11 that evening. Corky should not be accompanied by any friends from the north. He should wear a flower in his buttonhole.
Clover said "This could be a set-up. The time frame is too long."
"I agree, distinguished specialist. Still, there is no other option. However, if I stay by myself too long it will attract attention and if I mix with the wrong people he may be scared off. I will have t' improvise. I would suggest not assigning Harriet to listen to me as I will be doing karaoke and flirting tonight."
/-/
Ilia and Julie arrived at Rick's at nine and took two chairs at the bar. After fifteen minutes, Ilia realised that the waiting was if anything going to be more stressful than the actual mission. Julie was receiving a lot of attention and was informed that she was a foxy lady whom they would like to buy a drink for.
At 9.15 someone addressed Ilia in an Atlesian accent which reminded her of her schooldays. "I am charmed t' meet you, young lady. I suspect you and your friend are waiting for friends judging by your frequent glances at the door. I too am waiting for a friend and it may be less hassle for all of us if we share a table while we wait. For a start, it will avoid me looking like a lemon for the next hour and your friend will not have to resist the temptation to kick my compatriots where it hurts. Just give me a prod when your friend or friends arrive, and I will leave you alone."
She turned and looked at the stranger and saw a tall lynx Faunus dressed in a dinner jacket and bow tie with a carnation in his buttonhole. She turned to Julie and asked her opinion. Julie looked at the stranger and said "That is fine. Please understand no petting and we will go halves on the food and drink. I hope that we will not have to wait longer than forty minutes for our friend."
"Understood. Let us take this booth here. Our backs will be to the wall and we have an excellent view of the door."
Ilia realised as she sat down that various people in the club were watching them. Well, to be accurate watching either the stranger or Julie. Ilia's ability to blend into her surroundings increased in times of stress and certainly a nightclub was not her normal habitat. While she was not inclined to be attracted to males, the Faunus was objectively handsome and clearly Julie found him attractive.
"My name is Leslie. I was born and bred in Vacuo. I work as a guide."
Julie asked "My name is Alison, and my friend is called Elinor. What does being a guide involve?" Julie preferred to use false names, and these were the names which they had used with Beige. She also believed that all men were happy to talk about themselves and encouraged them to do so rather than have to speak about herself.
"My CV discusses identifying quicksand, advising on local Grimm and wildlife, warning of imminent sandstorms, avoiding sink holes and liaising with nomadic tribes. I also will kill Grimm if necessary. I assume that this the first time you have visited Vacuo?"
Ilia wondered to herself whether Adam would be interested in him. He had decided than the plan needed someone who understood Vacuoan conditions to guide them, and he had not been satisfied by the abilities of the local members of the White Fang. there was also the problem that he did not want to explain the mission to them having decided that they were useless and indiscrete braggards.
Julie replied "Yes, it is. We have heard it is incredibly beautiful. Do you do tours?"
"I am currently gainfully employed. However, I can recommend some friends of mine who will not rob you blind if you mention my name. I could take you on a day trip on my next day off."
"If you do not mind me asking, what is with the accent?"
"It is the only one I have. Learnt it from my mother. I have six stories explaining how she learnt it, one of which might actually be true."
"Actually, can I take your scroll number? I may take you up on the offer of an introduction."
Ilia watched the door and the rest of the club. She was concerned that three men were still watching the table but were trying to be inconspicuous about it. She was startled by the next comment from Julie.
"So, you work for the Atlas military?"
"Yes, I'm one of the civilian contractors. Pay is fine and it beats working for the multi-kingdoms."
"Do you use the accent working with them?"
"Yes. Most of them are used to it and treat it as normal. Also, it helps persuade the squaddies t' obey me when I tell them t' stop moving."
"I find it hard to believe that they are that understanding. Most Atlesians I know are sensitive to believing that they are being mocked."
"The men are used to me and most of the new Ruperts listen to their opinion."
"Most?"
"I have been acquitted fifteen times of accusations of insolence."
Ilia wondered about him as a possible recruit. The reference to preferring to work for the military than the multi-kingdoms suggested that he had some standards as everyone knew the multi-kingdoms paid more provided you averted your eyes. Fifteen attempts to court-martial him must also have caused some resentment, although the acquittals suggested that at least some of the officers must be decent.
Julie laughed and said, "Let me guess, they use you as a test for idiots."
"You may very well say that. I cannot possibly comment."
He said, "Are those three men at the bar friends of yours?"
Ilia said "No, are they staring at you or Alison" She had nearly said Julie, which showed she was flummoxed.
"If they have any taste, it would be Alison. It is possible that they are acquaintances of the friend I am waiting for who wish to give him a warm greeting."
Ilia wondered at the phrasing.
"Alison or Elinor, would you like to join me for a karaoke song. I think that may help distract our spectators."
Ilia was prodded by Julie. Ilia did have a better voice and Beige was more interested in Julie than her so it would not be such a problem if he saw Ilia with the Lynx Faunus.
Ilia asked, "What duets do they have here?"
"Do you know Argus?"
Ilia nodded. She did her best to restrain her desire to disappear into the background.
/-/
In the limousine outside, Elm and Marrow exchanged glances.. The use of the word warm suggested that the so-called friends were potential killers who would be known to their potential informant and needed to be dealt with before he would appear. Elm then passed on the message to Clover.
They had discussed this eventuality earlier this evening. RSM Ebi and Captain Schnee wee outside the sister's house ready to take her into custody if the informant appeared. Clover was too obviously Atlesian military to intervene, it had to be assumed that everyone knew Marrow was with the investigation and was Atlas military while Vine was just too distinctive. Harriet and Elm were the only choices and the deciding voice had come from Corkran who had said "Specialist Elm does not look like a person to start a bar fight, Specialist Brees can pass for a bampot. Can you do a Mistralian accent?"
It had not eased the relationship between Corkran and Harriet when the meaning of the word bampot was explained although luckily Elm had not been in Harriet's eyeline and had been able to repress an audible giggle when the explanation took place. They had only been able to place a couple of disguised cameras in the club, but they were reasonably certain that they could spot who the three people referred to were.
Clover said "Harriet, you are up. Three men. Try not to seriously injure them but keep safe. Do not fight the bouncers."
/-/
Ilia was cringing with embarrassment. The Lynx Faunus was clearly enjoying himself and was acting out the lyrics while she merely concentrated on being in tune and getting the lyrics right. She noticed that a bar fight had broken out and that the bouncers were rushing over to eject the three men who had been staring at them and a small woman who had apparently been fighting them. Surprisingly to judge by the condition of the four, the three men had come off worst and one of them was clearly concussed.
To her chagrin, the Lynx Faunus had decided to go for an encore. She supposed that "Another one bites the dust" was appropriate and the audience appreciated it. She was starting to wonder how the three men had been dealt with when she saw Beige and a few other men walk in. As the song finished she whispered that their friend had arrived and thanked the Lynx Faunus for his company.
To her relief, Beige had spotted Julie and was delighted to see her. The men accompanying him quickly got the message and left him to order wine for the three of them. He was only slightly disappointed to hear that Daphne (Blake's alias) was not with them tonight and accepted without question the story that they were holidaying in Vacuo.
He needed little encouragement to boast about how he had proven his value to the SDC over the last two days. It was something about having ensured that the pricing system was not vulnerable to retrospective challenge because 51 % of the shares in the store company were variable rate preference shares held by a charitable trust. Luckily, Julie was able to sound fascinated by this. His state of inebriation also augured well for him falling asleep of his own accord and indeed the main concern was getting him back to his hotel room while he was still upright. She suspected his companions were glad to be rid of him.
The Lynx Faunus passed by the table and winked at them. It appeared that his friend had also arrived.
/-/
Outside the club the fight between Harriet and the goons had continued until the three had all been knocked out. A short man stepped out from the shadows and went into the club.
Marrow wondered whether this was the target.
He listened carefully and heard Corkran say "Frank, it is good to see you. Shall we take a table."
Frank replied, "What is the deal?"
"You tell the military all you know about the hunting expedition and who was behind it. They will take you and your sister to Atlas and give you a new identity. Minimum 10,000 lien if you name names, but up to 100k plus on how good the information is and what use theycan make of it. No obligation t' testify in court. You will be given immunity from prosecution provided you cooperate fully. They have a team watching your sister who will move in when you walk out the door with me and they will look after her in any event. I suspect that we have 10 minutes before Atlas Gold replaces the team I arranged to have dealt with in greater numbers. It is either that or you will be dead by morning."
"Deal. Let's go."
Elm started the motor of the limousine and started towards the club entrance. The Lynx Faunus bustled Frank through the door carefully ensuring that as much as possible his aura shielded the human from potential gunfire. The man was pushed into the limousine and they drove towards the main barracks and a flight to Atlas. As they left the car park three other cars drove past them into the car park at high speed.
They bundled the man and his sister onto the airship together with Corkran. It had been decided that it was safer to have the interrogation take place outside Vacuo and that for the first few days it was best to have someone who knew the man, albeit slightly, to both reassure him and let the interrogators know when he was trying to pull the wool over their eyes. Apparently General Ironwood had also expressed an interest in meeting the Faunus.
Elm and Marrow then reported to Winter Schnee and looked over the surveillance coverage with her. Just after they had left ten people who were obviously armed had entered the club but had left quickly after a few words with the club manager. Evidently he was not happy to see them. Winter asked them to rewind the footage. She stared at it and then said, "I hate coincidences. The women who Mr. Corkran were talking to just picked up an up-and-coming SDC executive who has just earned himself a large bonus over the last two days."
Marrow said, "The Fox Faunus is an attractive woman and has a voice to match. Maybe they both have the same tastes?"
"Perhaps. Just check that he is still alive tomorrow. There have been too many dead bodies recently. I will send a message to Mr Corkran to see if there was any reason he chose them to speak to."
Elm said, "He did say that he would try and deflect suspicion by speaking to people who clearly were not a threat and would suggest to others that he was not expecting to meet the target and merely having a night on the razzle"
"Send photographs of the two women to Atlas and ask them to check through their database in any event."
Clover and the Ambassador then called from the embassy. The Ambassador said, "Captain Schnee, Specialist Ederne, Lieutenant Amin. I gather that tonight's operation was successful. We will have t' see what information he has t' offer and how many of the names he can give us are still alive tomorrow. For what it is worth, Headmaster Theodore has protested t' me that whatever I am up t' is seriously spiking the level of negative emotions in Vacuo and that he would appreciate it if I can bring my operations t' an end quickly. He also says swings and roundabouts, we are causing many of the normal causes of negative emotions t' eliminate each other, so he is not too angry."
He paused and said, "I have asked specialist Ebi and his team to keep a watching brief over the local security heads of Atlas Gold and the Mistral Dust Company. It is possible that they may be the next targets of silencing."
/-/
Umber Raddock was speaking to Jacques Schnee over the CCTS system. He was reporting on the day's events. While the communications were encrypted, it was understood that euphemisms were needed and should be capable of a mild meaning. Transcripts would be prepared of the conversations as well.
"I believe Beige has convinced the authorities that they cannot backdate price adjustments for our stores. He also says that he kept that part of our structure a secret so our competitors will be vulnerable to a retrospective adjustment. The authorities have placed us on notice that they will be changing the rules with effect from today to make the structure ineffective. Beige says that he has a variant which may not be caught although he recommends that we do not push it as far as we have with this structure."
Jacques harrumphed, but Umber thought he was basically pleased.
"I would like to keep Beige here for another week. It is possible that there will be some kickback and I would like his input on alternative structures as well as on minimising the impact of the changes we need to make in the future."
"Agreed."
"A business associate of AG and the MDC has been taken into custody this evening. It appears that they may have helped a fund an attempt to kill Ambassador Campion. I can assure you that neither I nor Crimson financed such an attempt. While I may have heard some intemperate remarks, I merely considered them drunken ramblings which would be forgotten about in the morning or if remembered dismissed as fantasies."
"I have no doubt that is the case. You would have known my reaction if the SDC could be shown to have been involved in such treasonous activity. As the most you did was humour their bragging, then I see no need to take any action beyond documenting that fact."
"On the negative side, I am proposing to reveal seven over-reactions to the violence during the strike to Major Magenta tomorrow. All seven have agreed to sign an NDA and to accept an ex-gratia payment of 30,000 lien. We will claim that interrogation will merely cause unnecessary stress. I do again apologise for not having overseen Crimson with more care."
"Provided that is all to come to light, then while not fine, it could be worse. Those times were difficult and the threats of violence to our employees, while not justifying such actions, make them understandable."
"In relation to the independent contractor status issue, our advisers believe that we may be able to persuade the authorities to accept the status quo provided we supply good quality safety equipment to all of them as a matter of course. We will try for renting it to them at a reasonable rate but are not sanguine that this will be acceptable."
"Let me know the difference between providing first rate and good quality equipment. Perhaps leave the renting option for the first-rate equipment and be plausible about the definition of good equipment and use a phrase for first rate which suggests that it is excessive precaution."
"Sir, there are reports that a potential new seam has been discovered in the Rising Sun mine. I am proposing to reallocate some miners to it to help develop it. Care will need to be taken as there are some old workings above the new seam."
"Fine. Go ahead. I presume that is all, Raddock. Good work and do keep me informed."
Umber ended the call and relaxed. The prime responsibility for overseeing the Rising Sun mine lay with the more co-operative of the Majors in Vacuo and an inspector who had little residual sense of duty. He suspected that the only safe way of dealing with the issue was to arrange an accident burying the evidence, but even he felt this was a last resort. No point in risking pricking people's consciences unnecessarily. He would fly out to the mine tomorrow and explain things to the manager there. Luckily, the current manager had been a member of the mining staff eight years ago and had participated in one of the, in retrospect, most unnecessary incidents. He sent a scroll message to Beige telling him that his presence was required for at least another week.