Sime~Gen Roleplaying on IRC: Snake River Dam Scenario
Episode #69: Pigeon (11/12/00)
Nick returns to the Sime Shack after his visit to Riyyh, in a very ~~ thoughtful ~~ mood.
Nick isn't sure he understands high-level politics at all, but after several years with Snake, his nose for trouble is keen enough.
Nick stamps the snow off of his boots outside the door, then uses his Donor's prerogative and goes in without waiting for a signal to be answered.
Taskent: Hello Sosu Nick. [Stopping his initial grab]
Nick: Hi, Taskent.
Nick: ~~ absently ~~
Nick: Arat?
Taskent realizes that Nick has the right to barge in but his reflexes always get the better of him.
Nick fumbles with cold-stiffened hands to unbutton his coat, then hangs it on its peg by the door.
Emmet looks up from the huge stack of reports he has been annotating.
Arat is engrossed in writing a summary of reports that have been submitted to him by the different Tecton task forces overseeing (well, harassing, really) Mr. Birch's company's sanitation, debris removal, camp security and other departments.
Emmet: Good day, Sosu Nick.
Nick nods another absent greeting in Emmet's general direction.
Arat would like to dissolve the "preliminary task force" some day, if he can ever remotely justify doing so based upon an improvement in living conditions in the worker camp.
Nick moves closer to his channel, letting his nager gently impinge on Arat's to break his concentration.
Arat looks up.
Arat: Nick. [somewhat distracted himself]
Nick looks surprisingly serious, for a young Narosian.
Emmet shifts his attention to the changes in the ambient as the other Donor moves into the room. He does not want to appear any more clumsy than necessary, in the presence of these Tecton powerhouses.
Arat zlins Nick's serious nager and puts his pen down.
Nick: Arat, it appears that my... er, Sectuib Riyyh, left out an important detail when he described his plan for placing the out-Territory Gens in an interment camp for the winter.
Arat naturally looks somewhat alarmed at this.
Nick: Its funding.
Arat: I had wondered how they intended to manage that.
Nick sits down in his chair next to Arat, rather heavily.
Arat had been unable to find anything out, and had reluctantly contented himself with the knowledge that Riyyh has been starting programs for 42 years and probably knows what he is doing.
Nick: They don't. If it's going to happen, the money has to come from elsewhere. And quickly.
Nick shifts on his chair uneasily, although he keeps his nager steady.
Emmet, satisfied he has arranged his nager as well as he can, goes back to his reports. But he can't help eavesdropping. Well, maybe he could, but he's curious.
Nick: Riyyh suggested that your personal funds might be sufficient to get immediate supplies imported, before the snow makes that impossible.
Arat gives Nick an incredulous look.
Taskent is also trying not to eavesdrop. Impossible given the dimensions of the room.
Arat: My personal funds?
Arat is usually above say, believing he's mis-heard something because he hadn't wanted to hear it, but this is an extreme case.
Nick: Yes. Or at least your credit line: the suppliers would know your name. Presumably, the donation payments the Gens receive over the winter could be used to pay at least some of the money back.
Taskent whistles mentally. He knew Arat was loaded he just hadn't known how big the load was.
Arat's expression darkens.
Nick: I think he understands what he's asking of you, but he doesn't see any other way to get funds quickly enough. Those supplies have to be ordered quickly.
Nick: I don't know very much about this sort of thing, but it seems to me that the situation might be less personally risky for you, if you are not the only contributor.
Nick: If we ask Mr. Birch, and SWAT, to contribute as well, it would become a joint effort.
Nick is well aware that that would still leave Arat paying most of it, but does let him avoid taking all the credit--which could be rather dangerous for an Audnes.
Arat knows that if Mr. Birch had any intention of spending money on the Gen problem, he'd have done so long ago.
Arat knows that SWAT doesn't have any money to spend, and gathering donations of funds from its renSime constituency in order to send Gens away from the area so soon after a selyn shortage would probably flop.
Arat frowns.
Arat thinks this is a cockamamie idea. He doesn't think in exactly those words, of course.
Arat: You are talking about funding the physical building of the camp, the labor of collecting and retaining the prisoners, their food and heating fuel only... what exactly are they asking me to fund?
Nick: Er, all of it, I think. Although you may be able to use volunteers to help with some of the labor.
Nick is not at all happy at the implications, although he has no real idea of the sums involved.
Arat casts Nick an expression that on anybody else might have been stunned, appalled, or disbelieving; on the infinitely expressive Farris face, all 3 are quite visible.
Nick reflexively tries to making his nager ~~ soothing ~~, with less than perfect results.
Taskent is trying not to show too much interest in the discussion.
Nick: There is always Mr. Birch's idea of just using force to run the Gens off.
Arat's repertoire is joined by uneasiness.
Taskent is also very grateful that he is very low field at the moment. With two First Order Donors in the room he feels pretty safe from the scrutiny of the Controller.
Arat: I thought he abandoned that idea.
Emmet is dismayed to realize that these august officials don't have everything completely under control.
Nick: In favor of a camp, yes. If no camp is forthcoming... well, he's taken matters into his own hands before.
Nick: Those Gens are his fellow citizens, after all: he can't let them freeze or starve to death.
Emmet dislikes the idea of an internment camp for the Gens in any case. He mourns for the destruction of the pristine beauty of the wild landscape.
Emmet thinks these border-crossers should go back where they came from; they're spoiling the neighborhood.
Emmet momentarily forgets that the neighborhood was never much to brag about.
Arat: The snowfall has not produced the increased interest in returning to Gen Territory that I had hoped it would.
Arat does resort to the hope method sometimes.
Nick: Elte tells me that unemployed Gens in his Territory are forced into manual labor.
Arat has noticed that Elte tends to wax dramatic.
Nick: I gather that they aren't paid enough to do more than exist.
Arat: It is no different than what Naros intends.
Nick: Well, perhaps, but the only work they'd be forced into is producing selyn.
Nick omits camp chores and such from his analysis.
Taskent had been hearing all kinds of rumors about the Controller's family and political maneuvering. Stupid stuff in his book. But it must be interesting to these Norwesterners.
Emmet's notations to the records get slower and slower as he eavesdrops on the conversation.
Taskent is rather happy that Nivet has a far less interesting political structure.
Emmet has always wondered what would have happened to him if he crossed the border to Gen territory.
Emmet might have done that, if his parents hadn't sent him to the Tecton to be educated.
Emmet wonders where his brothers and sisters are right now, and if any of them have changed over or Established.
Taskent wonders what it would be like to be that rich and scared that someone might notice.
Taskent thinks that if he had that kind of money he would tell the rest of the world to go get stuffed.
Taskent would love to be able to do as he pleased.
Taskent thinks about it a bit more. It is kind of sad though. To have everything and not enjoy it. A real pity actually.
Arat tries to run the numbers, based entirely upon his own estimations.
Arat: This is an impossible request. I would be ruined.
Arat has no illusions as to the difficulty of enforcing his right to the selyn fees of the Gens without draconian contracts of a sort more suited to a feudal land contract than a Tecton Controller's personal financial dealings.
Nick: It does seem a bit extreme.
Arat also has little to no access to his financial advisors, who have traditionally handled his money for him.
Nick: What else can be done, then?
Arat: I would want to see explicit and detailed plans for the institution and ongoing operation of the plan, as well as requisitions and schedules.
Arat: I refuse to even consider the problem without that information.
Emmet has heard the stories about the Audnes Superfarm in the days before Unity.
Emmet wonders if this collection of wild Gens might form a nucleus to build a new Farm.
Nick nods.
Emmet thinks that with the huge population of workers in the area, food is definitely selling at a premium.
Arat will not waste thinking time on a proposal which is showing increasing signs of being nothing but wishful thinking - unless he has solid proof that it has been well thought out by those who would be implementing it.
Nick: I will ask Riyyh to write one up. It wouldn't hurt to have some of our own clerks make a second estimate, for that matter.
Emmet suspects that a farming enterprise would be more lucrative if the workers didn't eat up all the product.
Emmet would be willing to pay quite a bit for a few fresh fruits himself. He likes dried apple slices and raisins, but you can have too much of a good thing.
Nick: Jeniard would know who can be discreet.
Arat frowns.
Arat wonders why Nick wants discretion. Is there something else about this plan that he is missing?
Emmet has noticed Jeniard seems to have an independent source for goodies, but those are always reserved for the Controller.
Arat studies Nick.
Emmet is far too polite to bludgeon his assigned channel with Gen appetite.
Nick notes Arat's frown.
Nick: I'm concerned that the authorities back in Capitol might misunderstand, if you take the initiative in this kind of effort.
Taskent wonders if the Gens in question have any idea what is being planned for them. The folks at the bottom are always the last to know.
Nick: That is why I suggested trying to involved Mr. Birch and SWAT, if we can.
Arat should have thought there'd be more cause for concern if Arat took the initiative in forging alliances in Norwest, than if he simply donated funds to a cause initiated by someone else.
Arat: I see.
Arat wonders how influenced Nick is by his father/grandfather, and how much pressure Nick is willing to put to Arat to take the course of action Nick prefers.
Arat: For now, I would prefer to see only the proposal from Naros.
Nick nods.
Nick: I'll tell Riyyh to get it to you as quickly as he can.
Arat: You should also tell him that realistically speaking, I cannot donate full funding for this project. Even were I to sell everything I own, it could not be done in time.
Arat: It is all in investments.
Nick nods again, making careful note of Arat's phrasing so he can repeat it verbatim.
Nick has only a hazy idea what "investments" are, or why they are an issue in liquidity.
Arat: However, I may be able to secure loans for the transportation of the goods if they arrive from either Couver or Gen Territory via the Reservoir.
Arat means, browbeat his shipping interests into floating the transportation for a year or so.
Nick brightens a bit.
Nick: That would extend the time factor a bit. The trails will close first.
Taskent wonders if Nick will be putting any of his own money into this plan. The Donor must be filthy rich by now.
Nick has a nice nest egg, if he ever bothered to check his bank statements, but nowhere near enough to finance feeding and housing 2-3000 people for a winter in the mountains.
Arat nods.
Emmet feels privileged to be party to such high-level deliberations.
Emmet knows the Controller doesn't sound very encouraging, but he has confidence some way will be found to rescue the itinerant wild Gens.
Emmet has assisted at enough reluctant donations recently to dread the part he will have to play in said rescue.
Nick: Still, it's going to be very close, if it can be done at all.
Nick promptly wishes that he'd left the "if" out of his statement.
Taskent does feel sorry for the Wild Gens. They are going to starve and or freeze to death if someone doesn't do something.
see note 1
Taskent is not fond of snow. But it is cleaner than mud. Well, in spots. He makes his way to the mess tent. Breakfast is his favorite meal of the day, especially on his rare days off.
Taskent ponders the last note he got from his real estate broker. The parcel he'd been trying to buy has jumped in price again.
Taskent wonders if that parcel would be worth anything if he hadn't already bought up all the land around it.
Anonymous Agent is waiting for Taskent near, but outside of hearing range of, the security company's mess tent.
Anonymous Agent is a suspiciously nondescript renSime who appears to be a government agent of some kind.
Taskent grabs a tray and heads for the buffet. Eggs, cheese, pancakes with lots of butter and syrup, now that's breakfast. The only thing missing is biscuits. But they just don't rise right up here.
Anonymous Agent looks like the sort of person who would be seen lurking in large numbers when the World Controller or the Sime Territory President or somebody of that nature went travelling.
Taskent inhales his breakfast, as he usually does. Although breakfast is his favorite meal of the day he never lingers over it.
Taskent, replete and happy, forgets the land deal for now. There isn't anything he can do about it anyway. He walks out of the mess tent whistling a happy little tune.
Anonymous Agent: Pssst....
Anonymous Agent looks and zlins both ways before beckoning Taskent over.
Taskent looks around for the source of the sound. He sees the Sime who he figures is calling him.
Anonymous Agent beckons again, since Taskent didn't seem to see his motion the first time.
Taskent goes toward the Sime warily.
Anonymous Agent: You're Taskent, right? [quietly, once he's within range]
Taskent: Who wants to know?
Anonymous Agent pulls out his identification.
Taskent looks at the presented ID.
Anonymous Agent: I'm Turk Lefska from the Internal Integration Service.
Turk Lefska's ID seems to be in order, at least from the POV of the 1,000,000's of people who have never seen one.
Taskent is not sure exactly what the IIS. does, but then who is?
Taskent: Yeah. Well what do you want with me?
Taskent is not willing to believe everything he sees. He has forged an ID or two in his day.
Turk Lefska checks again to make sure nobody is listening or zlinning, then leans close.
Turk Lefska: I'm prepared to offer you a deal you might find most interesting.
Turk Lefska: Umm... rewarding.
Taskent: [looks dubiously at the Sime] Rewarding, how?
Turk Lefska: In conjunction with the Insurrection Abatement Council we are investigating the activities of Controller Arat Farris, your client.
Turk Lefska: We have reason to believe he has been in contact with the Audnes Revolt here at the Snake River Dam construction site, and may be planning a coup.
Turk Lefska: We have nearly completed an investigation which promises to tie him to the Capitol Riots, the motive being to allow his placement here in Norwest.
Turk Lefska: Your position as his bodyguard would allow you to obtain certain information that could be very helpful to us.
Turk Lefska: In return, we are prepared to offer you....
Turk Lefska names a figure carefully calculated to be all the money Taskent could ever need to finish his purchase and build a nice ranch, buy horses and retire.
Taskent looks at the Sime before him in utter disbelief. He must be kidding.
Turk Lefska appears to be perfectly serious. That's part of his job as a government agent, of course.
Taskent: Look Agent Lefty or what ever your name is. First off, I took an oath to my employer that I ain't willin' to break. Second, that is all a bunch of bull crapis. And third, the man is allergic to this place. Why in shen would he want to get stuck here?
Taskent might not have any loyalty to Arat personally but he, Taskent, treats everyone fairly.
Turk Lefska: People have been known to go much farther for what they perceive as their national duty.
Turk Lefska: Controller Farris' parents commanded great loyalty among the junct residents of the New Othwol area. That is why the Tecton would not reassign him there.
Turk Lefska: We know that the bulk of the revolutionary activists who wish Norwestern independence have gravitated to this site in the last six months.
Turk Lefska: We know that he has been in contact with them.
Taskent: Is that so? [nearly dripping sarcasm]
Taskent: I don't know who put you up to this. Sounds like the kind of bizarre prank Erskin likes to pull. I ain't fallin' for it! So find yourself another boy.
Turk Lefska: I'm sorry we couldn't work together, Taskent.
Turk Lefska truly is sorry. He hates the part where he has to order the secret execution of uncooperative witnesses close to the accused.
Taskent: Yeah, right. [walks away shaking his head]
Taskent is about to take Erskin apart with his bare hands over this one.
Erskin approaches the mess hall, his stomach grumbling.
Taskent sees the object of his ire.
Dezrin is close behind Erskin.
Erskin really wishes they would put on a cook who knew how to cook food that tasted like something besides wet wood ash.
Erskin is due to go on shift right after lunch.
Taskent: Hey, Ersk!
Erskin catches sight of Taskent.
Erskin: Taskent! How's it hanging?
Taskent is not a happy camper and it shows.
Taskent: What the shen did you think you were doin'?
Dezrin notices Taskent is in a foul mood. That's odd, he seemed ordinary enough a little while ago.
Erskin sees the storm cloud on Taskent's face.
Erskin knows Taskent has just come from a shift in the Controller's office.
Erskin hopes nothing is wrong; the Controller is a difficult employer, and, as everyone knows, crap rolls downhill.
Taskent isn't quite as tall as Erskin and so has to scowl upward at his roommate and fellow bodyguard.
Erskin: What are you talking about?
Erskin glances at Dezrin to see if he knows something Erskin doesn't.
Dezrin is looking intently at Taskent, wondering what's up with him.
Erskin hates being left out of the loop.
Dezrin meets Erskin's glance and shrugs.
Taskent: "What are you talkin' 'bout", he says. [Taskent is losing his temper a thing he does rarely].
Erskin: I do say. Why you got your panties all in a wad?
Taskent: Don't try playin' innocent with me. I'm tired of your practical jokes!
Dezrin's laterals flick out, then shy away from Taskent's anger. He takes on a ready stance, out of pure instinct.
Dezrin: [we're talking about his protection instinct, not that other instinct. Fortunately]
Taskent has dealt with said practical jokes in a good sportsmanly way ever since he had the misfortune of drawing Erskin as a bunkmate but this one is the end. No one jokes about his loyalty!!
Erskin: Shen, can't stand a few thistles in your shoes? What a cry-baby!
Taskent: I suppose you don't know nuthin' about some clown pretending to be IIS.
Taskent is getting redder with each heart beat and they are coming faster and faster.
Dezrin can zlin that Erskin really doesn't know.
Erskin: IIS? Did he give you the secret sign and password?
Erskin has noticed a lot of clowns around the camp, and certainly counts himself among them.
Taskent: What the shidoni friken crapis do you mean secret sign!!?
Taskent's language is going down hill in proportion to his anger.
Dezrin: Hey, buddy, calm down. You want the whole camp staring at us?
Dezrin: He doesn't know what you are talking about OK?
Dezrin can zlin that much.
Taskent turns a snarl on Dezrin. "Back off Dez!!"
Dezrin jerks back a bit from the emotional eruption, then starts to look angry himself.
Dezrin decides he isn't going to let his ass get fired because they decide to brawl.
Dezrin: You two sore heads figure it out for yourself.
Dezrin stalks off to the breakfast tent.
Erskin: Well, surely you know that in Gen territory secret agents have a secret handshake and decoder rings. But here it's just a tentacle sign and password. I read it in "Mercenary Magazine."
Erskin has to admit that his career in security isn't as exciting as the stories in the magazine promised.
Erskin gauges Taskent's expression and figures he is nevertheless about due to have some excitement now.
Taskent spins back around to confront Erskin. Erskin should be laughing at Taskent by now.
Taskent notes that he isn't laughing.
Taskent: You mean to tell me that wasn't your sick idea of a joke?
Erskin: What wasn't?
Erskin: Someone said he was from the IIS?
Taskent rolls his eyes skyward. "Yeah!!"
Erskin: So was he?
Taskent: How the shen should I know?!
Erskin: What would an IIS agent be doing out here? Finding out about the Gen invasion plans?
Taskent's anger has lost its impetus. He is slowly starting to think straight.
Taskent: What?! Oh, no.
Erskin personally thinks the Gens he has seen couldn't invade their way out of a cardboard box, but a lot of people in camp swear there is a plot afoot.
Taskent: Said something about a coup though.
Erskin: Infiltrating SWAT to see who is beating up all those Simes?
Erskin is definitely concerned at the growth of Duart's union security force.
Taskent: No. [lowering his voice] He was talkin' about the Controller.
Erskin frowns.
Erskin: What about the Controller?
Erskin, as one of the Controller's bodyguards, considers indiscreet talk about his charge a cause for concern.
Erskin knows that everyone loves to gossip about Controllers, however, and there's not much to be done about that.
Taskent: I gotta go see the Chief. Somethin's up.
Erskin: Well, don't just tease me with it! What happened?
Taskent: I'll tell you on the way. Come on!
Erskin: Okay.
Erskin hurries to keep up with Taskent. He hates to be left out!
Notes:
1) Some time passes between these two scenes. [return]
Go on to Episode #70: Contact Sports
Return to the Index of Episodes