Relocating to Imperial Space
09 Feb 2020Prochaska
Zoe arrived on Shen Terminal in Guuguyni on the 19th of August 3305 and roamed the corridors of the Coriolis station, following the notes on her wristcom. The thought of what Ms. Reedings may have written about her in her report to the new office made her nervous. She reached the inconspicuous office, which had been transmitted as a meeting place, and was greeted by Rich Osbourne. He formally welcomed her to OSA Unit 52 and apologized for the absence of the rest of the team, saying the office at Shen Terminal had only recently opened. The rest of the team would be at the Unit 52 operations center at Schuster Station in Ienpalang. To ensure that she can move around the Empire and investigate without arousing suspicion, he was entitled to award her an honorary title of knight of the empire, and for transport a Courier of the Imperial Navy would be at their disposal. Her main mission was to continue the investigation of the Weyn Dock incident. After the Argus Panoptic Corporation took control of 64 Arietis, there were increasing signs that the people behind Operation Myrmidon had retreated to Imperial territory, where bioengineering is not subject to the strict ethical rules of the Federation. Jet General Solutions, which had already been in financial trouble before the Weyn Dock incident, is in an even worse position now that one of its major investors has cut off its funding. The exact source of the money could not be clearly determined; the trail is lost in a foundation with the pompous name "Pro Bono Publico". Dr. Mayakovsky himself had vanished after the happenings on Weyn Dock, and no one knows his exact role in all this, maybe he has just been a pawn that was simply spaced somewhere into the vast blackness. Zoe is supposed to find evidence that can be used to identify and convict the people behind it.
He skimmed her file again, and suddenly looked up in surprise: "You haven't served in the armed forces; well, this is an unusual case, we haven't had someone like you before. Is it no longer customary to serve over there in the Federation, or has the level of recruits become so low underground," he asked, and she had the impression that he could only just hold back from adding "that they're already sending us people like you"; in any case, he looked at her extremely critically. "I was recommended for the job. If you had read the file before I arrived, you would already know the reasons. Or shall I explain them to you myself?" Rich overlooked her comment; if she had hit a sore spot, he didn't let it show. Instead, he changed the subject and assures her that the attack on her life on 5 May 3305 in the PRAEA EUQ OG-O B6-3 system must have been committed by some renegades, and that the ISS had nothing to do with it. Then he ends the conversation with a reference to his further obligations, again pointing out the unfinished furnishing of the office and unmistakably showing Zoe the door.
After the short conversation Zoe was confused at first and busy sorting her thoughts. Rich made a very superficial impression on her. His imperial pomp and circumstance annoyed Zoe, and she felt overwhelmed by all the information. On the other hand, she herself was surprised how calm she had remained when he had questioned her qualifications. Out of defiance and for her delimitation she has the Federation emblem applied to her Imperial Courier before she departs from the station.