Fifth Session
Disturbed at their financial findings, yet tired from their trip, the crew decide to rest and consider what to do in the morning.
In the morning, the lax concierge tells them that their tour guide, and band, should be arriving in about half an hour. Othis and Shine decide to look for leader of the illegal Union, Timon Palov, on their own. They head down towards the elevator entry point at the station, thinking that they might find some contact with the workers down there. No one prevents them from going; the station is a bit colder, quite industrial, and nonetheless as empty, with larger corridors offsetting the additional people in view. Still, the lowest level, where the cables brought up cargoes from below, had some number of people working. Even for Othis, who had been to New Buffalo, trying to figure out how to get to the leader of the illegal Union was challenging; Shine had never been here before. Although as the Union's general strike was groundside, groundside seemed like the way to go.
In a central circle of counters, two clerks were happy to explain that there was a regularly scheduled passenger car down the next day, but they could ride down after the next upcoming car arrived in about ten minutes. They were warned that all technology in their possession would have to be confiscated, due to the "dangers of explosiveness." While Shine recognized that it was a possible danger, technology was no more inherently dangerous than any fire with any careless person - this reasoning did not make sense, although Shine did not overtly challenge it. Othis realized his bionic arm would not be allowed. They were willing to offer a low tech placeholder arm in its stead.
Less reassuringly, one of the two clerks started at a new configuration on his station's panel of lights: one of the cars had detached and was falling down towards the New Ontario district, a well-populated area! They unfolded paper maps of the city below and began frantically dialing various folks. Othis, looking on, thought the trajectory of the car was a bit odd for something falling away - the car would land on one of the better, downtown areas of New Buffalo.
And then a "dangerous bio-hazard" car pulled up - at least two cars ahead of schedule according to the clerks. Worse, it was closed but not bolted shut. The latches where the bars should have been were missing. Monsters from the planet below burst out, "silverfish" floating and drilling through anything it could fly through, and very large, clawed, poisonous gas-wreathed beasts. An alarm was pressed; exits sealed shut. One of the clerks pointed to a gun locker at the edge of the area, and said, "Get into one of the side chambers and lock yourself in there! It's your best chance!"
Meanwhile, Linus and Phaedra were "captured" by the tour guide and her group, who had arrived ten minutes earlier than the concierge had said. At Phaedra's request, they were led to the new remote theater, which they had seen in passing yesterday. The guide was happy to oblige, leaving some tickets to the Museum in Counterweight Station for them at their hotel, as a possible option for later. Phaedra was satisfied with the quality of the equipment, all virtually new. Linus noticed Marina slip in Phaedra was still enraptured with her stage and the equipment. The guide, on some unseen or unheard signal, slipped out to the hall.
Marina said, "The Board would very much like it if you would perform something for their entertainment in six hours or so." This was clearly a command performance of some kind, and Phaedra was happy to oblige and make preparations. The guide came back to confer with Marina, and Linus sidled up - there was a car falling from the cable, to the New Ontario district. This was a disaster in the making, likely with at least thousands of casualties, particularly if containment of the planet's toxic atmosphere was breached. And one of Marina quietly said to Linus, "My daughter goes to college in the New Ontario district."
Linus went up on the ships wireless communication system. "Othis? Shine? What's going on?" Hearing no response, he interrupted Phaedra and began to try and figure out how to stop the canister from striking the city. A ship plucking it out of the sky? It couldn't catch up in time. And they didn't have a pilot. Missiles? Where could those be found?
Back in the station's lower level, the fight was on. Othis had his high-tech rifle, while Shine was familiar fighting with low-tech hand-to-hand weapons. They both also had experience in MicroG environments. The silverfish were an annoyance, but the big things were the bigger problems. Othis shot it; Shine stabbed it - an intense fight that brought them victor.
Yet, oddly, a strange, spacesuited man shot one of the clerks! And then joined Othis in shooting the creature. The fight largely over, he grabbed Othis's hand and raised it. He said, "We are here - with hostages - until our demands are met!" From the side rooms, four other spacesuited people brought out some of the passengers. "We are here with the people of Green Sun," he pointed at Shine, "to pronounce our victory! Unless our demands are met, these hostages will be killed. I, Markov Palov, am here to avenge my poor brother Timon, who was killed by these New Buffalo types earlier today! We demand a ship and safe passage to get off the station or we'll start killing hostages and blowing things up!" Mining explosives were also brought out, and, while their hostages were being covered by two of them, two others began rigging the station area.
Othis, at this point, replied to Linus, explaining the situation. Marina, for some reason, was playing phone tag with people who were close to the situation on the station, and others who were apparently being appraised of the situation. Marina explained to Linus and Phaedra that there were not really any police forces currently available (the general strike and the upcoming Board meeting taking a lot of resources). They were planning on blowing the entire section out to space; although this may have originally been their plan to get rid of the creatures that had escaped, it would serve for this purpose as well. Linus noted that Shine and Othis were likely to be killed. "Offworlders?" Marina said, "That changes things. I see what I can do." She argued some more; Shine and Othis's presence was enough to keep that plan from being followed, at least immediately.
The canister was still falling... Checking public records, Phaedra realized her family owned a mining ship on station! It had an energy-weapon like thing that might still be able to blow the canister up! Sweeping into the vessel, she and Linus pulled away from the station to get a better shot. Recalling a role very much like this, Phaedra made preparations to shoot down the canister, in the an appropriately dramatic manner, in keeping with the ad hoc character of Gunner on a Ship Trying to Protect Innocents From Danger. Appropriately dramatically, she succeeded!
Back below, Othis looked at the explosives. He remember reading the Space Elevator was pretty impregnable - the explosives might take out the station, but probably couldn't take out the Elevator. And from what Linus had said about the willingness to space everyone as a tactic, this plan didn't make sense. He leaned forward to touch heads with the blathering fellow to get a better look through his screen.. the fellow leaned away. It was Hrothgar. And, fortunately, Othis had a gun and (now) much stronger willingness to use it. After fighting the large beasts, subduing this crew of miscreants presented no great difficulty.
A trio of New Buffalo security forces - wielding energy rifles - popped out of a car from above. They took custody of these prisoners. They would be punished for their crimes - particularly the murder of the poor clerk - and likely transported below to somewhere... difficult.
Returning, Marina still expected Phaedra's performance in a few hours time. And she said to Linus, "Thank you for your help. And let me add this: None of this has happened."
At the performance, Phaedra choose to loosely dramatize what she had recently experienced and include a subtle social critique - it would be a story about an avoidable disaster that one of the servants noted was impending, but was ignored until too late because of his class. In front of the house, the crowd was many of the luminaries of New Buffalo. Press was present. Marina was, as well. Vice Chair of the Board William Syracuse of Syracuse Combine, the second largest, was also in attendance. Leeandra Raoul was there with her husband and two children. Timon Palov was there on his own. Pieter Coventry was represented by, technologically unusual for New Buffalo, a video camera, in the center seat of the front row.
This immediately raised danger signals in Linus's mind - all of Coventry's enemies were in one place, and he wasn't there. Perhaps Marina had the same idea, as she and he were tense and watchful throughout the performance.
As Phaedra rested during intermission, Othis was approached by Mr. Syracuse. He challenged Othis's credentials as a trader, but also invited Othis to come by with his monastery-acquired casks of beverages. Linus, and eventually Shine, approached Leeandra Raoul. Sounding her out, she seemed relatively satisfied with the state of things in New Buffalo and did not seem able to catch Shine's insinuations about the sociopolitical problems of New Buffalo.
After the performance, Pheadra rested, knowing she did as well as she could. Shine approached Timon, who was heading downward, relatively quickly. "What are you fighting for," Shine asked. Timon said, "The resources to get everyone off New Buffalo, to someplace better. And I won't rest until everyone is off this horrible place - the resources to pay for everyone to leave already exist."
Afterwards, two armed men meet Phaedra, and the rest of the crew, as they return to the hotel. They have brought her a formal, handwritten invitation, in proper high Galliardi form for lunch, just her, tomorrow. Marina, in the postscript, had not told Phaedra of this invitation, necessitating the extra effort.
