Chapter Three: North Pole City

[Stirling]

Tiberius

"Oh don't do that. It will spoil the surprise.
You know New Year was hectic, so that wining and dining with Tansy got pushed to the back burner. So anyway I organised this surprise. A tribute act singing soft lullabys, pastel lights, the aroma of mandrakes, clean sheets ... have to keep the romance going to brighten the office drudgery."

He tries the charm again, dancing a few steps with the old lady on the flagstones.

[The Bindoner]

Returning to her room Nālani checks that Hoshiko's automatic feeder has dispensed her food, pets her, and showers.

Afterwards, sitting at the room's desk while the Home Salon styles and colours her hair Nālani strokes Hoshiko on her lap and calls Tiberius:

Tiberius, I have a legal matter that I would like advice on, and you were in company with a party of lawyers at this mornings meeting. Would you be so good as to put me in contact with them, or at least ask their opinion on my behalf?

The Queen has suffered serious degradation while docked in the bay. A series of criminals have committed various crimes over many years, among them the theft and destruction of fixtures, fittings and equipment belonging to the ship and its owners. As the ship was impounded by the Navy and held in a Port Authority facility they had a duty of care over it. I intend to claim that they must make good the harm their neglect or complicity have caused. As a major shareholder I hope you will feel the same. If you are still in company with Sam perhaps you could ask her opinion too?

[BackworldTraveller]

Tiberius

"Oh don't do that. It will spoil the surprise.
You know New Year was hectic, so that wining and dining with Tansy got pushed to the back burner. So anyway I organised this surprise. A tribute act singing soft lullabys, pastel lights, the aroma of mandrakes, clean sheets ... have to keep the romance going to brighten the office drudgery."

He tries the charm again, dancing a few steps with the old lady on the flagstones.

Somewhat reluctantly, she agrees that you can be let in and escorts you to the door. It isn't a quick climb of the stairs because, despite the low-g, Mama Montalto is not the spring-chicken she once was.

Addressing Noor

And you make sure it's kept just the same as when you arrived...I don't want any complaints that I let in a pair of rowdies!

[Stirling]

Tiberius

"Mama Montalto, quiet as church mice."

He goes into the familiar apartment. A large open plan lounge diner seperated by an island kitchen. A bedroom and tiled bathroom complete the floor plan with a balcony overlooking the neighbourhood gardens. A spiral staircase off the lounge opens to a rooftop terrace and a conservatory of flourishing tomato vines and pot plant cacti.

After we gain entry, Tibbs will close the curtains to shield the room from any prying eyes and make Noor comfortable. "Go ahead, fix your gadget up and I will fix some coffee."

I will respond IC to Nalani later in the evening as the chronology catches up.

[Monsieur Rose]

Noor aka Sam

Noor gets a glimmer of amusement in her eye as Mama Montalto refers to her as a 'rowdy'. "Of course, Ma'am. I wouldn't think of it. Thank you."

After they enter and she looks around, she nods in approval. "Safehouse, huh?" She smiles as she begins to tease Tiberius. "And who is Tansy? Nice place she's got here."

Noor sits at a table and leans back, tired of her day. "Coffee would be good. Today has been something, huh? Like back undercover, never a moment's rest." She spreads out her supplies on the table and gets to work building the cage and checking the chip.

She gets a tear in her eye as she starts reading the note. Then she looks a bit confused and sits up straighter. Noor appears to re-read something multiple times.

"Hey, Tib? What do you know about Jusu? You know, that scientist that disappeared with that money."

[Stirling]

Tiberius

"Only rumours. Was involved in some banking fraud or industrial espionage of some kind. With the kind of money he took he could almost buy a planet.

Scientists though. Dedicated people, not normally the hedonistic type. Maybe whatever project he was working on got shelved and he decided it was worthy enough to 'self fund."

He brings a couple of mugs of steaming milked frothy brew and sits at the table.

"Jusu written a note? What does he say?"

[Monsieur Rose]

Noor

"A series of scattered notes, actually. Just keywords to jog one's memory, that kind of thing." She pauses and looks around. "I hate to ask, but is this place bugged? Is this Tansy a personal asset or professional?"

Upon confirmation that the place is secure, she continues.

"The notes mention some technical things, and a few names. They seem to have to do with a 'Longjump'." She looks to Tiberius' face to see if what she's saying registers with him. Her face remains deadpan, but her eyes gleam with excitement.

[Stirling]

Tiberius

"With Tansu? Well that's a bit complicated. Travelling star worlds and calls of duty are not compatible with settling down.

Besides she has a career too. I certainly don't put our liason down to being used as 'an asset'. What we have works, hopefully more rather than less.

As to bugs. I brought you here to keep you out of public and private eyes. Mama Montalto aside."

You could pick up Tansu is a romantic liason.

"The only long jump I am familiar with is from college athletic games. What science discipline was this Jusu a professor of? How does this link in to Sabah Enterprises ?"

He could ask lots of questions but understands a lot remains unanswered as perhaps Noor doesn't know yet either.

"Read the technical data stuff. And let's make a note of those names. Are they in danger too?"

[BackworldTraveller]

The technical stuff is a lot of papers on multi-dimensional spaces and exotic particle states. Noor's father's famous paper is one of them - but there are papers from about a dozen different authors - some well cited and some hardly referenced.

The note is the only bit of stuff by Jusu Saffa himself.

All of the papers are at least 5 years old.

If this is what all the fuss is about the only bit that isn't public information is the note.

[Stirling]

Tiberius

"Well looking through these notes, nothing sticks out. The dissertations are archived freely. Maybe your chip has encrypted information, a cryptex puzzle or enigma that needs decoding.

Is this all you have? It doesn't seem worthy of chasing you across the galaxy to murder you and your family for or to keep you all silent about."

The 'Faraday' set up. What does it do and what does it not do. If it stops location being highlighted does it then also stop information being downloaded to it. So we are viewing what is on the data chip and not accessing data that the chip could connect to, such as Jusu Saffa's scientific discoveries. Or the man himself?

I am trying to make a link but an unproven hypothesis could be that during the five years these papers are written, the scientist Jusu defrauds his millions and invests in his theories which now after years of experimental research are not just theory but .... but what. Not proven fact. Unproven fact?

And these 'unproven facts' have become the property or knowledge of Sabah enterprise and Saffa's competitors want to steal, close down, copyright the material.

The only one who may know is the scientist Jusu himself. How do we locate a galatic fugitive?

Tiberius offers various wild conspiracy theory and shrugs.

[Monsieur Rose]

Noor aka Sam

Noor shows Tib the note:

-----
Noor

Amina asked me to look into the Physics Store because of her investigation. I've sent this via you as a message from me directly to her will be obvious - we haven't spoken for years. Please tell her that the chip was inside a copy of the Two Towers (not his original) that was in with the old inductor chips from his exotic work.

Mostly it is old papers (even mine) but the interesting bit is the memo. I think Jusu was working along the lines she suggested and the money he netted could easily have funded a prototype.

Love You, and thanks
Dad

-----
Longjump Notes

• NOT inside forbidden radius.
  • Query numbers (Azara)
  • Lab? Two Towers?
• Coherent Exotic-State Quasi-Matter Β-level spin Alignment
  • Field Generation
  • Field Amplification by Gravitic Resonance (Joe Zuchai?)
• Field Flow
  • Cherenkov?
• Antenna
  • Grid Formation (Applied? Grown? AM?)
  • Material
    • Iso 139?
    • Screen for Paramagnetic Interference
      • 583 kelvin failure
    • Purity and Source…Belt or Downers? Inners?
    • Sealing Problem (Chemist? Biochemist?)
• Pressure
  • LHyd?
  • 3He?
  • 4He – Poison?
  • Boyle?
• Insertion
  • Kick
    • Heat Dissipation
    • Forced Field Spin Alignment – How?
    • Fuel Volume
  • Pseudo-Spin at Tumble
  • Calculation:
    • The Beyond?
    • Calculizer?
  • Inter-Weave Collapse
  • Transit
    • Life Support
    • Timings
  • How unbound is time?
• Funding
  • Secrecy Bound
  • Who?
    • HR?
    • JJT?
    • IP?
    • KK?
  • Purchasing?
    • Who?
  • Transport
    • Celisse?
    • Ulysees?
• Assembly?
  • Black Tower again?
• PR?
  • Beta-Level too close…Ask Jean.
  • Cerberus Needed
  • Russian Dolls?

[Stirling]

Tiberius

"Well that looks a complicated thread. Some fellow scientists and their fields of research. Jojo Celisse mentioned? That is quite alarming. A link which ties in with the 'shipping of government supplies' that was the pretext for smuggling and the arraignment of his ship. That was organised by Belter Navy agents. And my instinct leads me to believe Belter Navy and their agents still have some vested interest in his pirate vessel. Queen of the Belt.

I still don't see any 'shout out' facts? What is the Physics Store? What did Amina suggest to Jusu?. A prototype long jump? Going further faster?

So, Jusu engineers the 'Tomorrows world', competitors industrial espionage highlights your family links to funding? Data keeping? Assisted research? En Sabah estates are raided and further evidence covered up by a subsequent fire.

Did you have anything to do with that?

You flee mercifully but are tracked to Sparks due to the QoTB shareholders meetings. Those shares in the ship. I don't think you bought them? You are not present or ex-crew. Inherited or passed down the family line as a connection or investment in something Jusu was trailing with Jojo prior to the restraining.

So Jusu goes missing five years plus ago, but up to four years ago had used the QoTB for smuggling? Research? Cargo haulage?

But you are only worth killing if what you have or know can be taken. And you are sure this chip is the only 'thing' you have?

There must be more on this chip than first revealed. Which brings me back to encryption and hidden enigmas contained upon it."


Tiberius has a feeling the long day, hotel stress, cannboid leaf and fantastical theories are getting the better of him.

"Let's see what your Faraday gizmo does."

[BackworldTraveller]

Noor/Sam
Just looking at the chips contents seems like it's a disorganised collection of stuff, or may be it isn't...

Computer skill roll please (Unskilled, INT), plus you said you were applying Admin expertise, so a separate roll for that please

[Stirling]

Tiberius

I certainly think the chip contains more than the note.

I asked before a question regarding the Faraday gizmo, if by stopping our location from scrying it also stops the chip accessing info it needs to download.

I also think of that R2D2 chip which on face value contained the 'save me Obiwan' hologram but in reality contained the Death Star plans.

So maybe Noor we need to run the chip through a holograph. Know anyone with one of those?

[Monsieur Rose]

Noor aka Sam

Electronics: [2d6] = 6 +1(int) =7
Admin: [2d6] = 5 + 2(edu) +2(admin) = 9

"I had no idea about any of this! I've never met Jusu or ever heard him mentioned at home." Noor tries to take in all the theories put forth. "The fire. I thought it wasn't an accident, but to remove any evidence of the murders. Do you think this whole fiasco is because of these notes? I thought it to be political." She pauses and considers. "But something must be on this chip, or are even the notes worth killing for?"

As Noor learns that Celisse was the Captain of the Queen, her eyes widen. "I didn't know that. Who's Ulysees? Another Captain?"

"What the hell really went on with that ship? I don't recall where we got shares in it, or when. I just remembered it when I saw that the Queen was being released."

"If the Queen was being used for experiments or moving equipment around, the crew must have been aware of something." She gasps. "Nālani was the pilot, right?"

[BackworldTraveller]

Noor/Sam

If there is anything hidden on the chip, Noor would normally get a flunky to find that sort of thing.

What she does spot is that the papers are arranged by subjects, except for one folder which has a mix of odd titles...

...Opening one, it turns out to be a list of small sized construction companies specialising in portable buildings
...another is of smelting companies with numbers (between 100K and 120K) after them
...a third is a list of shipyards
...another is a list of 3-d printer manufacturers
...another is a list of 5 bank-account numbers
...and a list of employment agencies
...and a list of bedding suppliers
...etc.

[Stirling]

Tiberius

I am still not convinced the information revealed so far us enough to justify the massacre at the house and the assasination attempt at the hotel.

There are various leads an investigator could follow but you need a definite thread. The situation at the moment is you don't know who or why your family have been targeted except some link to a missing scientist accused of stealing millions in a fraud. Which he may have used to further his field of research into long jump technology.

Part of a note suggests he may have built some prototype and enlisted Jojo Celisse to transport unknown stock or cargo.

I think Noor has to make a decision on how to go forward.

A) Keep trying to hide her identity and become a fugitive. But eventually whoever pursues you will find you.

B) Engage a professional agency to investigate family attack and keep you safe Use media to disclose chip details and engage a lab or engineering company to build on revealed info.

C) Announce the chip (if this is the info the assailants are after) is kept in a secure vault or processed by some military, political, scientific entity?

D) Flog the chip at auction to the highest bidder and let others fight over the theories and knowledge contained on it.

Tibbs makes more coffee and offers the bed to Noor, taking the sofa and a woolly blanket for himself.

Tomorrow is another shareholder meeting. Has the time and place of that been confirmed?

[BackworldTraveller]

Shareholder Meeting: Within 48 hours of end of original meeting, place TBC, Indrani to organise.

[Monsieur Rose]

Noor aka Sam

"You make some good points. The best of which is that it's late and I'm tired. I saw something about a possible crew meeting at ten tomorrow. I have to think about that."

Noor takes the offered bed and tries to sleep while going over the notes and various trails in her mind.

[BackworldTraveller]

An un-interrupted night's sleep is achieved by the two of you. Nothing untoward happens. The morning arrives as the gardens start to be wakened by the slow illumination from the "Solar-Lights". There is even birdsong!

The sounds of the garden courtyard being traversed by some early risers drifts up. All it needs to be perfect would be the smell of breakfast.