Author: Vladimir Korff

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The Blood-Stained Stars: Closing In — Part V

Sisters of Eve Bureau in Arnon

The Missing Piece

Essense region – Peccanouette constellation
Arnon System – Planet IX – Moon 3
Sisters of EVE Bureau station — Sister Alitura’s Office

22 October YC 127

It took Sisters of Eve three days to crack Kritsan Parthus. Admittedly, their methods were not as efficient as Minmatar’s but in the end they got what they wanted, and more. It turned out that Kritsan Parthus was a very close Dagan’s associate and knew a lot about his operations. Sisters learned that Dagan had been experimenting with drone AI for a long time. Sometimes those experiments delivered successful outcomes, like the attack on The Damsel, but sometimes they spiralled out of control with drones becoming rogue.

All that I learned when Sister Alitura invited me to her office for a mission briefing. The agent was visibly excited, and her fast talk was accompanied by uncharacteristic nervous gesticulation. Continue reading “The Blood-Stained Stars: Closing In — Part V”

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The Blood-Stained Stars: Closing In — Part IV

Station

Chasing Shadows

Essense region – Peccanouette constellation
Arnon System – Planet IX – Moon 3
Sisters of EVE Bureau station — Sister Alitura’s Office

19 October YC 127

Infiltration takes time. I understood that and didn’t bother Sister Alitura with “are we there yet?” questions. My patience was finally rewarded on 19th October when I received summons from the agent.

“Are we there yet?” I asked entering Alitura’s office.

She smiled and said, “Yes and no.”

“Tell me about the ‘yes’ part.” Continue reading “The Blood-Stained Stars: Closing In — Part IV”

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The Blood-Stained Stars: Closing In — Part III

Society Spy

Sealing the Deal

Essense region – Peccanouette constellation
Arnon System – Planet IX – Moon 3
Sisters of EVE Bureau station — Sister Alitura’s Office

7 October YC 127

Our Tahaki Karin was good. Within a few days of her transfer to the SoCT spaceliner, she started transmitting intelligence to the Sisters. According to Alitura, it was all useful staff, but there was nothing about Dagan. Apparently, the real Tahaki was pretty low in the Society’s hierarchy and it was hard for our field agent to get hold of anything really juicy. But Alitura assured me that Tahaki was rapidly building her social standing, and it was only a matter of time before she would be accepted in higher circles.

Based on that information, I did not expect any breakthrough in the next few weeks and was spending my life in dolce far niente. Imagine my surprise when I got a message from Sister Alitura requesting my immediate presence in her office. Naturally, I assumed that our Tahaki had discovered the whereabouts of elusive Dagan and I rushed to the security department. Continue reading “The Blood-Stained Stars: Closing In — Part III”

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The Blood-Stained Stars: Closing In — Part II

SoCT Space Station

The Sisters and the Spy

Essense region – Peccanouette constellation
Arnon System – Planet IX – Moon 3
Sisters of EVE Bureau station — Sister Alitura’s Office

16 September YC 127

Having finished Alpedurch Soulobert’s mission, I returned to Arnon. There, I dropped by Sister Alitura’s office to check if there had been any developments in Tahaki Karin’s mission.

Before I could ask a question, the agent said, “Captain, what happened between you and Alpedurch?”

“Why do you think anything happened between us?” I asked in response.

“Because when I called Alpedurch and asked him about your performance, he dropped the connection.” Continue reading “The Blood-Stained Stars: Closing In — Part II”

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A Case of Kidnapping — Part II

EoM Fiend
Genesis region — Ekrin Constellation
Sheroo system — Mission location

15 September YC 127

When I emerged from the warp tunnel at the coordinates given by Alpedurch Soulobert, I didn’t know what to expect. The agent, being of distribution variety, didn’t even bother to organise reconnaissance. Naturally, my eyes were glued to the Overview window as we hit the grid. First thing I saw was a group of three red triangles, 75 kilometres away. They were labelled ‘EoM Imps’. I relaxed and exhaled the pod goo that I was unconsciously holding in my lungs.

“Frigates,” I said. “So far so good.”

At that moment, a male voice hissed in the local channel, “Fool, you’re too late. We got what we came for.” Continue reading “A Case of Kidnapping — Part II”

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A Case of Kidnapping — Part I

Sisters of Eve Bureau in Sheroo
Genesis region — Ekrin Constellation
Sheroo system — Planet X — Moon 3
Sisters of EVE Bureau station — Alpedurch Soulobert’s office

15 September YC 127

Agent Alpedurch Soulobert
Agent Alpedurch Soulobert

Alpedurch Soulobert was a forty-something, red-haired Intaki with an earnest demeanour and a firm handshake.

After greetings and introductions, I said, “So what’s burning, Mr Soulobert?”

“Our investment, Captain Korff,” replied the agent. “A few months ago we hired a group of talented scientists to work on an important project. They were on a verge of a breakthrough when they were kidnapped. If we don’t rescue them, not only we’ll have to restart the project, but our adversaries will get a head start.”

“Interesting,” I said somewhat acerbically, “that a representative of a charitable organisation such as Sisters of EVE did not mention the scientists’ wellbeing as a cause for concern.” Continue reading “A Case of Kidnapping — Part I”

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The Blood-Stained Stars: Closing In — Part I

Bank of Luminaire Depository station in Aydoteaux system

A Stranger’s Face

Essense region – Peccanouette constellation
Arnon System – Planet IX – Moon 3
Sisters of EVE Bureau station — Sister Alitura’s Office

15 September YC 127

“Good morning, Sister. What have you got for me?” I said, entering Sister Alitura’s office.

“Good morning, Captain,” the agent said and pointed at a huge container in the corner of the room. “This.”

“What’s that?” I asked, eyeing the box suspiciously. Continue reading “The Blood-Stained Stars: Closing In — Part I”

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The Blood-Stained Stars: A Breach of Trust — Part VII

Ammatar Consulate Bureau

Brothers and Sisters

Derelik Region — San Matar constellation
Tanoo System — Planet V — Moon 1
Ammatar Consulate Bureau

14 September YC 127

“I am pleased to see that you came out of the trials victorious, Captain Korff,” Dovirch Anselm greeted me when I entered his office, “but I never had any doubt that the divine justice would prevail. We both know that Lord Taphos’s claim was spurious — he had never had a chance to win this hallowed contest.”

I wish I had your confidence, I thought. Aloud I said, “Thank you, Agent Anselm. I have received my first incentive; I have come to you for the second one.”

The agent steepled his hands and looked in the distance. The distance, obviously, was limited by the wall of his office but he seemed to look through it. Silence ensued. Continue reading “The Blood-Stained Stars: A Breach of Trust — Part VII”

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The Blood-Stained Stars: A Breach of Trust — Part VI

Lord Taphos's Crucifier

A Call to Trial

Derelik Region — San Matar constellation
Tanoo System — Planet V — Moon 1
Ammatar Consulate Bureau

13 September YC 127

Before coming to Dovirch Anselm’s office, I brainstormed the way I was going to break the news to him. The openings like “Hey, mate, your boss is in deep shit” and “It takes an Amarrian to fuck up that badly” were quickly dismissed, although Aura insisted that they would set up a dramatic backdrop for the message. Instead, I settled on a gradual reveal, taking a role of a courier and putting the spotlight on Doctor Canius who craved recognition. If all went well, I wouldn’t mind his getting back in Taphos’s good graces. On the other hand, any blame would also fall on Canius. Me, I just wanted to assist Taphos in finding the culprit who betrayed his trust.

“Good morning, Agent Anselm,” I said as I entered Dovirch’s office. “I have a message for Lord Taphos from Doctor Canius.” Continue reading “The Blood-Stained Stars: A Breach of Trust — Part VI”

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The Blood-Stained Stars: A Breach of Trust — Part V

Theology Council Tribunal Station

Revelations

Devoid region — Kisana constellation
Lisudeh system — Planet IV — Moon 4
Theology Council Tribunal station — Dr Canius’s office

12 September YC 127

I didn’t intend to have any more dealings with Doctor Canius, but there I was sitting in his office and patiently awaiting his advice. You see, the problem was that the only thing I could read on the document obtained from the scavengers was Dagan’s signature. Everything else was written in an alphabet I had never seen before. I had no choice but to turn to a specialist, and Canius was the only scholar I knew in Lisudeh.

“This is fascinating,” Doctor Canius mumbled. “See this character?” he pointed at a squiggle which looked like a drunken worm who couldn’t decide which way to crawl. “It’s Jovian! The words aren’t Jovian though. It looks like they used them as a kind of a cipher.”

“Can you decrypt it?” I asked. Continue reading “The Blood-Stained Stars: A Breach of Trust — Part V”

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