Date: July 29, 2012
Game date: January 9, EY218
Location: Aiscapo system, Daebak
Previous events: Surprise attack by a mysterious -- by definition -- stealth ship
After Jillian's night talking at Xao she's horribly hung over and horrified at all that she's let slip the night before. She stays in her quarters with just a glass of water and several bottles of alcohol, not the best way to get over a hangover.
Bishop takes the initiative to visit the distribution company that hired them to rush the load of kimchi to Providence and explain that they didn't make it through the gate in time due to a "privateer" attack. They start off understandably annoyed but he spins a tale of how they kept the kimchi safe from the grasping hands of "Big Condiment" and that they plan to get the shipment through the next time the gate opens. He's amusing enough and they're already getting such a good deal after Jillian's special kind of bargaining that they're perfectly willing to not penalize the Hummingbird for the delay.
Malcolm spends a good part of the day flying back to Daebak from the gate with the ships who came through. They're much slower than his ship and he can't help but fly in circles around them and buzz them out of boredom. He makes it back that afternoon.
With her captain not coming out of her quarters Volkova examines the damage taken in the fight. It's really quite minor and she spends more time patching up the paint job than carrying out any real repairs.
When Jillian finally makes it out of her room she calls a meeting of her crew and the Grob. It doesn't take long before everyone agrees the most likely explanation is that Warden Whang told the Black Rose Syndicate about the Grob and the Syndicate made an attempt to capture live aliens.
Quiy and Vob both want the humans to continue to look for Tigd if they're going to be here for another week or two. And they need to keep looking for Seo, too! Now that they have time good potential avenues would be the Xenobiology and Xenotechnology department at Aiscapo University and the Bureau of Xenobiology (Box). Jillian sent a letter to Seo's supervisor while back; hopefully there's been some progress there. A meeting with the Resplendent Dragon's crew would let them divide labour.
Jillian's still not feeling great and uses that as an excuse to ask Malcolm to call Xao to get him and his crew over to the Hummingbird tonight. When Malcolm calls Xao's residence down on the surface he's home and will be up that evening. Neet, having never left Osan Station, should be able to make it too, but Xao's not sure where Olivia is and will be unlikely to find her in time. His crew was told that they were on shore leave until the 20th, after all.
After calling Xao, Malcolm also gives Commodore Blith a call to see if a naval escort to the gate can be arranged. This is unlikely, but there will at a minimum be a heavier military presence along that route.
For the meeting that night Neet and Xao show up. Olivia's not there, as promised, but neither is Malcolm for some reason. Everyone present plans for the next day. No one really has appropriate contacts for an investigation into what happened to Seo and Tigd -- Xao's contacts are definitely along the lines of business and Neet is too shy to have a network. The Grob will stay on board the Steel Hummingbird, of course, and so will Volkova and Neet: they're not really socially adept enough to be of use and it would be good to have some people on the Steel Hummingbird with the Grob just in case. The meeting over, Neet and Xao head back to Neet's room on Osan Station that he's been renting. As they leave, the Hummingbird's crew overhears Xao asks just how messy the room is; Neet insists it isn't messy at all.
Malcolm wanders back late that night. He's been touring the bars of the station looking for some information about pirates. Unfortunately for him, he was recognized as the jerk who kept buzzing the other ships on the way back from the gate and no one was willing to share much information with him. Jillian's annoyed by his absence but he didn't think that there was too much else to talk about after the crew meeting earlier and wanted to check out other leads.
Bishop comments that the way that Jillian refused to make eye contact with Xao and tried to never to speak to him directly during the meeting only reinforces his theory that they're into each other. It also suggests to him that something more than just conversation happened between the two of them last night. Jillian's response is to make him clean the galley and since they now have another one for the passengers she makes him clean that one, too.
The next day is January 10. Neet and Xao show up early and are ready to go. Volkova and Neet stay on the Hummingbird with the Grob while everyone else takes a shuttle down. Malcolm pays extra to bring his motorcycle: Wonju may have a good public transportation system but he'd much rather be the one in charge of his travels on the streets.
Once down on Daebak Jillian and Malcolm head off on his motorcycle, leaving Bishop and Xao to take a streetcar to the university. Stuck with each other on public transport, they put on very polite and friendly airs with each other, going out of their way to be friendly and polite with each other. Other passengers seem happy to see such a happy and sartorially interesting couple.
Everyone meets up at Aiscapo University and they head in the side entrance to avoid both the dolphin sculptures and security. They're officially supposed to sign in but Jillian's not sure if she'll be allowed on campus after vandalizing the sculptures last time. No one stops them as they walk over to the Department of Xenobiology and Xenotechnology. They know the name of Seo Yee's boss, Professor Eun Kyung Lee, and have no problem finding her office. She's in and has the time to talk to them. Jillian introduces everyone and mentions how they know Seo. She reminds Prof. Lee about the letter regarding Seo's situation that she wrote; once Lee remembers the letter she seems well disposed towards them. Jillian suggests that it's best if they talk in private and after Prof. Lee agrees everyone crowds in and she shuts the door. With the circulation cut off the temperature in the room shoots up and things get sticky quickly.
Lee is impressed that some couriers who were simply hired to ferry some of her employees are following up on things so closely. Jillian's presented photos of her crew and the Aiscapo University team with the Grob continue the favourable impression. Unfortunately, the professor doesn't have much information to give them. Her contact at Hoax, a Craig Johnson, hasn't been able to help her out much. Lee claims to be pushing Johnson but nothing's come out of it. Sadly, there really doesn't seem to be much that Lee can do and everyone leaves disappointed.
Up on Osan Station, Volkova is making special rounds for her grenade launcher. She's removing the explosive and replacing it with a strong curry powder that she's found in the galley. With using explosives on the ship an obviously bad idea her plan is to give any intruders "curry face" from a distance. Neet, on the other hand, is content to use his small-calibre holdout pistol if it comes to violence.
When attackers fail to appear for a few hours Volkova decides to have a drink or four and Neet joins in. His 190cm, 60kg frame doesn't handle the stuff nearly as well as Volkova's 76kg stockiness and leathery liver do and he's soon quite drunk. Not that she'd planned to do so, but Volkova can't help to ask him what Xao's feelings for Jillian are. It's a good attempt but Neet's too far gone to do anything but giggle hysterically at that, though.
Down on the planet's surface, the group leaves the University and discusses what to do next. Lee wasn't much of a help and her contact at Hoax will more than likely be just as helpful as everyone else they've dealt with at that shadowy government agency. It's decided that they give the Bureau of Xenobiology (Box) a try. They may have some insight into Tigd's fate, at least.
A phone booth and quick conversation with an operator gets them Box's address. Jillian climbs on the back of Malcolm's motorcycle again and they roar off to the Box offices while Bishop and Xao wait for public transportation. On the way downtown Jillian goes on and on in Malcolm's ear about how Xao isn't as great as everyone thinks he is and that he's not that handsome and his fashion sense is terrible too. Malcolm's happy that she can't see his face...
The Box offices are in a nondescript brick building with the standard sort of sign identifying it that all government buildings in Wonju have. It's obviously just offices here; whatever research is done is likely at the university or elsewhere. With all the life that's found in the cluster there are probably research centres scattered throughout each system.
Bishop doesn't feel like talking to the male receptionist so Xao gets to wrangle a meeting with someone who might be able to help them. They get Caillin Allen, who introduces herself as the Second Assistant to the Junior Undersecretary for Public Relations. Jillian introduces her crew as the people who met the Grob on Ingraham and provides the group photo as proof. It's soon obvious that she although Caillin has heard of the Grob she hasn't read up on the encounter, can't or won't reveal anything about the discovery of intelligent life in the cluster even to the people who discovered them, and is a PR hack who is of no use to them.
Jillian pushes Caillin to get someone else in to talk to them. Her knowledge of how organizations are set up is enough to let her bull through Caillin's bureaucratic defences and the PR drone soon goes off in a huff to get someone else. They're introduced next to Hyun Jung Gang. Gang isn't anywhere near attractive enough to be of interest to Bishop but judging by the ostentatious wedding ring she's got enough positive qualities for someone else to have married her. When she's told who the visitors are and their concerns about Seo she suggests that they speak in her office.
Hyun's office is big enough to fit everyone -- just -- and everyone has to jostle for place amongst many photos of Hyun and someone who is presumably her husband. There are only two guest chairs and by unspoken agreement they're given to the captains. Bishop adds a bit of extra grace by holding out the chair for Jillian but then pushes it in very close to Xao's as she sits down. He may have more punitive cleaning ahead of him but it's worth it.
It's obvious that Hyun is much more up to date about the events on Ingraham than Caillin and much more interested in aliens. This makes sense once she tells them that she's the official liaison between the xenobiology researchers at Aiscapo University and the Bureau of Xenobiology. The conversation is mostly about the concerns that the crew has about Seo and Hyun definitely seems sympathetic regarding Seo's plight. Bishop and Xao both get the impression that she also dislikes Hoax and they milk that antagonism to get whatever information out of her that they can. Jillian helps to nurture Hyun's positive view towards them by telling her a few Grob words.
All these efforts get them some vague and not terribly interesting information but there is one tantalizing name: von Däniken, a platform orbiting Limbaugh. Hyun whispers the name and then moves on to other topics quickly enough that it looks like she knows that she shouldn't have told them but nevertheless deliberately did so.
When the conversation starts to flag Jillian suggests having a drink with Hyun at some later point and telling her more about meeting aliens. Hyun is definitely interested! She's doing something tonight with her husband but gives Jillian her card with her home phone number hastily written on the back. They'll have to get together some time soon! She might bring her husband along, or maybe not; it's not going to be a strictly legal conversation...
Leaving the offices of the Bureau of Xenobiology, the crew feels like they may actually be getting somewhere after all.
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Bishop's Bedpost Notch Count: 0 (running total: 14)
Jillian's Bedpost Notch Count: ha! ha!
Malcolm's Bedpost Notch Count: 0 (running total: 1)
Volkova's Bedpost Notch Count: 0 (running total: 2)