Winner said:
[X] [Summit] Go
This will get you a viewpoint on the ground, to rub shoulders with the local players, to hear what's new with them and to see how the newly instated US embassy is managing itself on New Ireland. The format is familiar to you from the last time you visited another station.
[X] [Station name] Eureka
[X] [Grants] Internal affairs
This time the people left behind are Amanda and Ragnar. Your sheriff is remaining at home because Hailey tells you – and you agree – that a display of military might isn't currently helpful. So, while you'll have a team stationed on your ship, she's not needed to be a part of it, nor do you anticipate deploying them beyond a single escort. Erikson is staying behind to keep her company, to have another responsible person on site in case of some unforeseen emergency and because his presence on New Ireland would be superfluous.
The rest of your cohort has business to attend to.
Hailey is coming for obvious reasons. That you're not leaving behind your lie detector is only one of them. It's also her job to represent Little Klondike in diplomatic events, even if you'll be covering that role whenever you're present, and she has some policies she wants to enact in your embassy to make it more useful. Lena is going to be meeting with local doctors and some scientists to talk up your hospital and to back you up on matters pertaining to the anomaly. Lastly, Ken you're bringing along out of principle. While there, he can help you with the construction side of Eureka Station and to see what people think of your biggest local export article: food. But all that takes a back seat to the niggling feeling in your gut that he could do with some time away from his daily routine.
You yourself have a three-part plan for when you arrive. In the mornings, you'll be holding court. By now you feel confident that you'll have more people wanting to meet you than you have time for, but not meeting with anyone who wants to see you wouldn't be productive either. Your embassy can take care of the scheduling, so long as it's before lunch. In the afternoon, you'll be making your own rounds. Between the local factions, you already have plenty to consider, and that's without counting the various firms that have sprung up on the station since you were last there. Finally, your evenings you'll save for less formal interaction and maybe actually exploring the station this time. Knowing yourself, that's a long shot, but you can dream.
You arrive at New Ireland in the evening, the Excelsior cutting in front of a loaded freighter and darting between the lazily spinning spokes. As you approach the central drum, you count a number of ships docked to the structure, a stark contrast to the almost skeletal emptiness of your last visit. There's still clearly a sector of the station itself that's dark, but more than two thirds are lit up, extending the effect of water flowing over pebbles that you once mentioned as NI's nicest feature to Kari Erikson.
Of the marooned spacecraft, you recognize the Ironbond logo on one of the vessels, giving you a hint about who's already arrived. If things are the same as last time then Azure Star are also present. You yourself are bringing along Ghorst to speak for Prismdust Station. The rest of the ships you don't recognize; the only one you would know is the COD craft, but its ultimate fate is still unclear for you, and your view turns away when you come into your own pier.
As you leave the ship, you're greeted by the same man who received you last time, although thankfully Hailey moves to greet him, because you've long since forgotten his name.
"Mr. Ruiz, we finally meet again," she extends her hand.
"Mrs. Erikson, a pleasure as always," he accepts the handshake, "I see congratulations are in order, please do not hesitate to call on me whenever you wish."
Hailey smiles, her pregnancy no longer mistakeable in any way, "I might just take you up on that, Miguel."
The man answers with a polite smile of his own before turning to you with a shallow bow, "Mr. O'Rielly. Welcome once again to New Ireland. I am the permanent liaison between the local government and your embassy, and your guide for the duration of your stay. If you would follow me, sir, we can go over the itinerary before we get you and your entourage settled in for the night."
"Itinerary?" you ask as the elevator starts to pick up speed.
"A number of people have expressed an interest in meeting with you, sir. I'm here to extend an apology on behalf of Mrs. Choi that she can't come to meet you, as she needs to remain available herself, but she has requested that you go to see her before the summit. Furthermore, she has instructed me to inform you that this time the summit is to be followed by a cocktail party and a concert by local performers to facilitate the forming of social bonds in a less stressful environment."
You were already considering staying for another day just in case, but that makes it easy, even if both Lena and Ken look queasy at the thought of mingling.
'Especially since they do, actually,' you share a conspiratorial grin with Hailey.
With that you arrive at the same hotel overlooking the same plaza, but while the former looks just like you left it the last time, the latter is nearly unrecognizable. Neon signs line the streets and structures, advertising firms and products, each trying to jump out at you, but only ensuring that they all blur into a mixture of colors. A flick of a switch has your window appearing like frosted glass, causing the rainbow of lights to take on a mildly psychedelic feel. It was nearly midnight when you arrived, but when you crack open the window just for the novelty factor of opening one for the first time in your life, distant sound reaches you.
On Little Klondike, unless you're by the bar, nighttime is silent. There are airlocks to capture any stray sounds from opened apartments and a pretty big portion of your living space is actually separated by vacuum. Now, however, muffled music floats in through the window, accompanied by the indistinct sound of chatter from somewhere far away. The baseline is mellow and slow, almost lulling you to bed already, but you intend to take advantage of apparent gravity before you go to sleep. A shower in microgravity just isn't the same as having water flow down your back at breakneck pace.
So you fog up the mirrors, let your skin turn red and
then land on the mattress, falling asleep with thoughts and plans for tomorrow whirling in your head.
Day 1 out of 3; summit on day 4. Choose one from each:
[ ] [Morning] Ironbond
Oliver Jarnstad is in town and wants to meet you. True to what you remember of his character, the message is brief to the point of absurdity, not even indicating any topic.
[ ] [Morning] SDM Company
The freighter firm you have a contract with has a representative in New Ireland, and they've expressed an interest in expanding their dealings with you.
[ ] [Morning] Susan Angelo
The officer in charge of the US security contingent for Eureka Station was a relatively young woman. Until the station is habitable, she's been living in the embassy on New Ireland, and she's logged a request to meet with you face-to-face once more, supposedly to discuss the anomaly and her team's role on the station.
[ ] [Afternoon] The Chois
Heather Choi wanted to meet you, her reasons pretty obvious: from discussing the future of the sector to your respective colonies' relationship to the summit itself, and you've decided to indulge her.
[ ] [Afternoon] The US embassy
The newcomers to your neck of the woods. Go meet them, make a positive impression and find out what's their role in the summit.
[ ] [Afternoon] The EU embassy
Supposedly Rousseau has been sticking her neck out for you, plus her advice seems to have been even better than either of you thought. Go and have a chat with her, she is still the representative of the most relevant superpower, even if there's some competition regarding that now.
[ ] [Afternoon] Azure Star
You know they're on the station, and you found them reasonable enough partners the last time you met. Go and see them to find out what their goals are and start swaying them to your own thinking. That you've had little interaction so far is only more reason to change that.
[ ] [Evening] The local hospital
Alright, so you're not relaxing in the evening. Lena has her notes and slides ready and she's not afraid to use them on unsuspecting doctors in order to talk up your own hospital as a viable New Belt destination.
[ ] [Evening] The entertainment district
Take Ken and do your best to convince Lena to join the two of you on a bar crawl. That is to say, to sample locally available alcoholic beverages in order to gather information about the competition to your own brands.
[ ] [Evening] An industrial tour
Your guide, Miguel Ruiz, has offered you a tour of the underbelly of the station. New Ireland is famous for her refineries and the whole structure could be seen as an elaborate dock. The engineer in you is itching to get a closer look at their facilities and the businessman wants to know what they lack and what they need.
[ ] [Evening] The cultural sights
Hailey intends to resume her exploration of the New Irish arts and music scene, plus the schools and churches might be interesting to look at.
. Congrats Hailey and Ragnar!
