Sime~Gen Roleplaying: District Controller's Office Scenario
Episode #172: Stirring Up Trouble (3/11/00)
Nick reports to Arat's office the morning after their conversation about his Snake Reservoir Dam investigation, carrying a bulging oversized envelope.
Nick signals politely, as he is not currently assigned to Arat.
Arat and Wise Snake both look up at the same time, then look at each other.
Wise Snake sighs.
Arat: Enter!
Nick opens the door, and his nager lights up in ~~ greeting ~~ for them both.
Nick: Good morning to you both.
Nick: Arat, here are the materials on the dam project.
Wise Snake's eyes and laterals study Nick speculatively.
Arat accepts the package.
Arat: You are certain you found everything?
Nick: Yes. Although not every inquiry I made has gotten a response yet.
Arat frowns.
Arat: In that case, I will arrange to have someone inspect your mail. If you have no objections?
Arat would rather waste the time of someone trustworthy than run the risk of one of Neptude's goons getting to Nick's mailbox first.
Arat assumes, of course, that Nick will not be able to perform this duty in a timely fashion himself, with a Donor's work hours.
Nick: Very well, if you feel it's necessary.
Arat: Neptude's accusations will certainly lead to an investigation, and likely one run by someone other than myself.
Nick consoles himself that the more incriminating communications will be arriving either by private messenger, or to various accommodation addresses.
Arat: It is possible that they will obtain warrants to search your apartment and your working areas here.
Arat: It is vitally necessary that everything be taken care of beforehand.
Arat never knows if he is getting through to Nick.
Arat used to think he knew, but has been proven wrong too many times.
Nick: Warrants? I hadn't realized that it was considered a crime to look into a publicly funded construction project.
Wise Snake wonders if Nick has picked up that this warning was not exactly phrased as it would be if Arat was the one Nick should be afraid of.
Arat looks at Nick in some disbelief.
Nick: However, I will make sure that there is nothing on the subject to be found.
Arat nods.
Arat: Thank you.
Arat has become more worried about Nick again. The man is not predictable.
Arat doesn't like feeling out of control of someone with as much power over his future as Nick has.
Nick simply can't get used to having his private life being a subject of interest to the Powers That Be.
Arat would have thought that the public outrage over the Dam project, and Arat's explanation of Neptude's suspicions the day before, would have sobered Nick, but if anything he has become even more stubborn on the subject.
Nick thinks that at least he's not living in prison like Snake.
Arat wonders, not for the first time, if he should have let Nick take the fall for this.
Arat just doesn't have that in him, though.
Arat wishes Nick was more aware, and more grateful, of the protection, though, and of what it will cost.
Nick checks the status of the tea glasses on Arat's desk.
Wise Snake has drained both of the tea cups.
Wise Snake has developed a reasonable tolerance for Tecton #3.
Wise Snake doesn't see any reason to let Arat waste a perfectly good cup of tea, either, and since it's right within arm's reach....
Nick picks up the cups and takes them to the tea table, taking down a third from the cupboard.
Wise Snake's eyes flicker between Arat and Nick.
Nick checks through the offerings for appropriate blends.
Arat opens the envelope and pulls out the contents, being careful to not let anything drop to the floor, and being equally vigilant for pick-pocketing attempts by Snake.
Arat has, over the last months and particularly over the most recent days, begun to do that almost automatically.
Arat had had to overcome an initial handicap: That of being fundamentally and nearly unshakably convinced that nobody would dare.
Arat blanches as he takes note of the contents of some of the letters.
Arat had had no idea Nick was trying to start a labor revolution of his own. This makes protecting Nick even more dangerous.
Arat, disturbed, takes three clean envelopes and begins to scan each letter and sort it into one of the envelopes. He plans to get rid of the worst of the stuff ASAP. Some will have to be kept for Neptude, of course. The communications to the project engineer regarding the need for high quality channels are innocuous enough.
Arat places dangerous, but useful contact information in a second envelope, and the 3rd contains the items that could end Arat's career tomorrow if any connection was ever drawn.
Wise Snake leans an elbow on the desk and watches, her pale eyes missing nothing, a smile on her face.
Nick frowns at the selection of teas, but after some consideration, makes two cups of Narosian, and one of Tecton #6, which he has discovered is somewhat harsher than #3.
Nick delivers the teas to the appropriate parties, and brings up a third chair to a nagerically comfortable location.
Nick notes Arat's disturbance, and puts a hand on his shoulder in hopes of ~~ soothing ~~ it.
Nick: You're really upset about this.
Arat slumps somewhat at the touch.
Arat's nerves are not at their best, what with recent events and spending so much more time with Snake, sometimes sans Donor.
Arat: It is not a good situation.
Arat: The timing, what's happening in the city and Neptude's move to replace me... it's just the timing.
Wise Snake's eyes sparkle.
Nick sends Snake an admonitory look; he's realist enough to know that she's going to enjoy any trouble that comes along, but he hopes she will have sense enough to keep her head low until they can all three get out of town.
Wise Snake's grin widens.
Wise Snake says nothing, though, fortunately.
Arat: These can be given to Neptude.
Arat sets aside one envelope, fortunately the thicker of the three.
Nick is not unsympathetic to Arat's discomfort at the thought of leaving his job in the 53rd District, despite thinking that it would be good for him.
Arat: If it is in his interests for you to prove innocent of wrongdoing, you will. A case could certainly be made on the basis of those documents.
Arat is afraid, however, that Neptude's agenda doesn't include Nick having an unblemished record, at least not if it will help Neptude get at Arat.
Arat frowns to himself.
Nick nods.
Arat is aware, of course, that he is somewhat liable for Nick's wellbeing in more than just the sense that Nick is his employee. After all, he did appropriate the Snake River Dam idea from him. If it hadn't been for that, this awkward parallel could not have occurred.
Arat thinks it would have been better if he could have borne the thought of sending Nick away sooner. Last month, perhaps. However, he couldn't.
Nick wonders if he should seek out Lexus to get the latest on Neptude's activities.
Nick has heard that Lexus has a thing for higher-rated Donors.
Arat in fact can't even bear the thought of sending him away now, although at least with himself and Snake in imminent departure mode, it's perhaps not a priority anymore.
Nick is fairly sure that he could convince Lexus of his innocence; the question is, whether Lexus could convince Neptude, and whether convincing Neptude would help or hinder his plans.
Arat does not find it a happy situation to be stuck on the fence regarding a decision affecting an employee's future, but he's been finding himself wedged there more and more often in recent weeks.
Nick: Perhaps Neptude's interest can be deflected.
Arat: These will have to be destroyed. [sets the 3rd envelope aside, then moves it farther away when Wise Snake reaches for it]
Arat: Pardon me?
Nick: It might be possible to convince Neptude to look elsewhere for the source of the leak.
Arat glances up at Nick.
Nick: If a suitably plausible--and harmless--direction for his interests can be found.
Arat is concerned that such a move would make it appear undisprovably that Nick and Arat were acing in concert, but he is willing to entertain suggestions anyway. At this point, he needs all the ideas he can get, and to pick only the flawless ones.
Arat: Naros?
Nick: Perhaps. Neptude would certainly get no straight answers from them.
Nick: Although his investigators would no doubt enjoy the challenge.
Nick: ~~ amusement ~~
Arat winces at the thought.
Arat had found no evidence that Neptude had had any idea just what his tax collectors were up to when they visited Naros, during his tenure as 53rd District Controller.
Nick: I'm sure it would take quite a bit of time for them to determine that Naros was not culpable.
Nick: Perhaps long enough for the matter to become moot.
Arat considers.
Arat: Do you spend any time at their urban farming office?
Arat is doing it a great credit by calling it an office, since it is basically a tool storage shed with desks at this time of year.
Nick: I do drop by there occasionally, when I want to send a letter to Sectuib Riyyh.
Nick: He's been traveling, so sending a letter directly is impractical.
Arat: You might consider suggesting to Racknie ambrov Naros that an environmental impact study as to what would occur if the old Dam were to fail prematurely would be in order.
Nick raises an eyebrow.
Arat has experienced some of the young zealot's attentions first hand and heard about other, more drastic, episodes before and since.
Nick: Racknie can be a bit... precipitate.
Arat is relatively certain that if he became involved, the precipitate would definitely hit the, er, bottom of the container.
Arat: True.
Arat: There was the riot and fire last summer. [recalls]
Nick: Yes.
Nick: Racknie could certainly provide a diversion hard to ignore.
Arat is thinking that if Racknie performs true to style, and if enough of the environmental types are aroused, it might be impossible for anyone to remember that Naros wasn't involved in the uproar from the beginning.
Arat: Still, we do not want to condone violence or vandalism.
Nick: Of course not.
Nick is pretty sure that with Racknie involved, these will happen without any effort on his part or Arat's.
Wise Snake: Of course not.
Wise Snake: [grins]
Nick winks at Snake.
Arat always feels twice as tired when Snake starts talking.
Arat: Perhaps it is not a good idea.
Arat actually thinks it is a brilliant idea, but he feels very insecure about having revealed to Nick that such an idea would even occur to him.
Arat feels even more insecure at having revealed that and more to Snake, but at least it's produced temporary obedience.
Nick: Would you rather I didn't talk to Racknie?
Wise Snake: He'd rather you forget he ever said it. But tell Racknie anyway. [winks back]
Wise Snake: My father has a bit of trouble with morals, you see, he pretends to have some. A hassle, if you ask me.
Nick: I'm sure it has its advantages, occasionally.
Arat casts an irritated look at Snake.
Nick: If nothing else, it means that no one is likely to think of him if something devious occurs.
Arat: Yes, well, do as you like.
Nick takes that as unofficial encouragement to recruit Racknie to do his worst.
Arat places the 2nd envelope, the one with the dangerous papers too good to lose, in his locked file.
Arat will have to move it, of course, but it's safest there for now.
Wise Snake makes a mental note of where it is. She's been into that drawer once, but not since Arat changed the lock.
Wise Snake sees it as an interesting challenge, particularly with Arat breathing down her neck as assiduously as he has in the past weeks.
Nick notes that much of the correspondence regarding living arrangements and other amenities made it into the filing cabinet.
Wise Snake has never discovered where he keeps his important documents off-site.
Nick of course assumes that Arat knows Snake will be after any documents stored in his office, particularly in her presence.
Nick is not overly concerned, since their living accommodations will be her concern as well.
Nick does consider Arat's separation and saving of the living-accommodations to be a positive sign that Arat is starting to seriously consider the change of venue.
Nick's nager ~ warms ~ just a touch.
Arat thinks that Nick's response is to his last words. It bothers him that Nick enjoys such roguish activities, which to him seem a distasteful and risky chore. But he can't deny that he sincerely enjoys the ~ warmth ~.
Arat feels the temporary sense of loose unity in the room, certainly a first with the three of them, and hopes that it means that Nick and Snake can be trusted.
Arat: [and that they will trust him to know what is best.]