[Battletech] A Life Worth Living For

There are a plethora of various media sources on the planet ranging from newspapers and magazines to radio, television and websites in all three languages in various sizes, markets and subjects. This list is just a few of the more widespread publications.

Regulation of the Media is handled by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (Ministry of I&B), a ministerial level agency of the Government responsible for the formulation and administration of rules, regulations and laws in the areas of information, broadcasting, the press and the Cinema.

Lakhsmibhai Local is the government-owned public entertainment television channel, radio broadcaster, website and newspaper in Laksmibhai. It is nicknamed as The Local (sthaaneey, La local, Bölge). The service has many services in all three languages and various channels and sites for music, news, sports, entertainment and so on. It is considered the voice of the government since most government officials and programs will be first interviewed or announced by them.

The Weekly Record is a weekly news and current affairs magazine published in all three languages owned by Morales Press. It is the most widely circulated magazine, with a readership of close to 8 million.

Yeni Zamanlar (The New Times) is a Turkish language daily newspaper.

Diario Independiente (Independent Daily) is a Spanish language daily newspaper. It is well known for its Sports Reporting.

Vishraam Patrika (Relaxation Magazine) is Lakshmibhais best-selling women's Hindi magazine. Spearheaded by veteran actress and public figure, Karishma Shashi Ahmed, this title has carved a niche for itself in the hearts of its patrons. The magazine is renowned to be a progressive one, focussing not just on fashion, beauty, and relationships but also on finance, careers and education.

Tendencias Hoy (Trending Today) is the world's most popular entertainment magazines, it publishes pieces in all languages involving entertainment and fashion news, interviews, photos, videos, reviews, events, and style.

The Human Element

Ranjan knocked on the door, his fist thumping off the cheap wood with a hollow sounding thud. After a second he announced himself, his voice weary.

"Gopal, it's me!"

The man in question opened the door only a moment later, an excited look in his eyes as he grabbed Ranjan by the shoulder. Ranjan could only grunt in surprise before he was practically pulled into the room by his friend and boss, awkwardly slapping the door shut as he passed by.

"Thanks for getting here on such short notice Ranjan! I got something big to show you!"

"Right, that's what you said over the phone."

They passed by several whiteboards covered in arcane financial charts and invoices before he came to a sudden stop in front of his desk, a blueprint of all things rolled out over it. It was clearly quite old and somewhat faded, but before Ranjan could take a closer look his friend snapped his finger to get his attention. He spoke, his voice full of wonder and excitement in equal measure.

"So remember what you said a week ago about the shortages, right?"

Ranjan nodded unsurely.

"Yes, because the workers at the chip factory walked out? What are you-"

"No, your exact words! The bit about humans!"

He had to think about that one, but he answered in a few short seconds.

"'Unfortunately, the human element of our operations can't be fixed easily'?"

"Got it in one!"

He started to pace, gesticulating grandly for emphasis.

"So, after you delivered that report, that phrase really stuck with me, and my mind wandered on over to this old bit of company history I heard about years ago. You know Veda Anand, right?"

"Of course, she was basically one of the founding members of the company."

His friend clapped and held his fingers up.

"Correct. Well, there was an incident way back in the day when the project was first starting where Veda got approached by some weird guy. Nothing happened, he just dropped off a blueprint about crazy robot workers or androids or something and left. It all got archived and reported but no one ever really took a closer look at the thing, considering how busy the company was at the time, and so it's been collecting dust for decades. Well, your whole 'human element' thing got me real curious about the whole concept, and seeing as we have nothing to do for the next few days, I decided to take a look at it."

He turned back to the desk, grinning down widely on the blueprint below.

"I used my credentials to check out the original from the archives, and true enough it was weird robot shit. I showed it to some of the tech guys, but they got real weird all of a sudden and started taking notes and asking me where I got it and stuff, and well let's just say they told me it wasn't bullshit."

Ranjan stared at him, his eyebrows effectively hitting the roof.

"So it's the real deal?"

Gopal sucked on his teeth and shook his head.

"Well, not exactly. The technology definitely doesn't exist and we have no idea if it would work, but the tech guys and the bio guys I brought in swore up and down that it looks feasible and professional, like the guy knew what he was doing. He wasn't throwing nonsense onto the paper, even if he's thinking on a level we clearly aren't on."

Ranjan sighed and resisted the urge to rub his face.

"Please don't tell me you brought in contractors for one of your plans."

"Don't worry, I paid out of pocket."

"That isn't much better."

His boss just grinned and slapped the blueprint.

"Take a look before you burn me at the stake."

He peered over at the blueprint, his eyes widening as he took in just how detailed and phenomenal the diagrams were. He barely recognized anything on there, but they were definitely cybernetic organs of some kind. His eyes caught on the outline of a humanoid figure, and he frowned.

"Why doesn't it have any feet?"

"That's not important, but the look in your eyes is. You're just as interested as I am."

"Fine, it is cool to look at, but we don't even know if these things are possible to make. Besides, this is some sort of merged blueprint, there isn't enough detail to replicate any of it."

Gopal patted Ranjan's shoulder and tilted his head towards him.

"That's where you come into play."

"You need my help again?"

"Who's to say this is the only blueprint?"

Ranjan's mouth opened as realization struck. Ranjan laughed and patted his shoulder again, looking off to the blueprint.

"This guy has been dead for decades at the least, but I know his name and possibly a rough location. If we can find any of his family or who he worked for or whatever mad science lab he worked out of we could get more blueprints or a journal or something. I need you to put out the feelers and see if you can find any records for us to pay a visit."

"I'm just an acquisitions manager, not a detective!"

"I have faith in your abilities. You spend more time around computers and filing cabinets than I do!"

"But what about how long this is going to take? We have jobs to do!"

"Ranjan, I'm the site manager. I can call in our vacation days with a single call to HR. Besides, you and I both know that strike isn't going to clear itself up for at least another week."

Ranjan looked to the ground and thought hard for another excuse, his eyes narrowing as he realized something.

"Isn't this dangerous? The whole…robot thing? Replacing humans sounds like something out of a horror novel, doesn't it?"

For once, his boss didn't have something to say right away. He hemmed and looked around the room, his mouth shifting as he looked for the words to use. Suddenly, he answered.

"You said it yourself; we can't control the human element. If we find anything that's real, imagine what it can do for the company, or even for society! Progress won't be held back by a few discontents anymore, and we could keep people away from the most dangerous work! It'll be the greatest innovation in human history!"

Ranjan held up his hands to stop him from entering yet another one of his rants, already nodding.

"Fine, I understand. Just a bit leery of going on another one of your adventures."

"Don't be such a downer, Ranjan! Even if we don't find anything useful, we'll at least have some cool art to…sell or something. What's copyright like on blueprints from dead people?"

Ranjan sighed.

EDITS:
1 - 'readouts' to 'diagrams'

Hermano Mayor Part 2

2306

Geraldo Abrahán Cortés, known to his close associates as The Pastor, was speaking with his Minister of Security, Bonifacio Vicente, the Minster of Personnel, Basilio Ventura and his Geraldo's wife, Zaida, who managed the various women working for them. Geraldo and his Fellowship was one of the largest organizations in Kaldura with hands in money lending, drugs and alcohol, prostitution, illegal lotteries and protection. Unlike others, Geraldo did not run this organization by himself, he used the organization style of the Church that his parents went to and the talents of the people of his community. The Evangelical and Catholic churches had survived for hundreds of years based on their organization and loyalty of the people. Each of the major communities had groups like his along with various minor gangs, but he provided for his people, giving favors with one hand but punishment with the other.

"So tell me about this young man, Abilio Mendoza. He has been working with us as Security the past two years. How is he doing Bonifacio?"

"He is stable, does not drink, no drugs, we found him a place to live and they report no problems. The landlord tells us he pays on time in full, no guests. All he does is work out at a local gym several times a week. He's gained about five kilos of muscle since he joined us. No family, his mother passed when he was 18 so came to work for us. Only friend he really has is Damián."

"Basilio?"

"He's good with his fists and a knife. He's been in several altercations outside the club with some gangers. He does not kill but he's sent some people to the hospital. He's like one of those guard dogs that sits there until you give the word to attack, then he hits like a lorry. I told him to take some unarmed combat classes so they don't break up the club."

"Zaida?"

"He leaves the girls alone. They tease him because he is a handsome sort but he just lets it go. In fact some of the customers have propositioned him both men and women and he turns them down. No other problems except Flor, the one with the scars, keeps talking to him. I could leave him next to room of naked girls and there would be no problems."

"Is he gay or something?"

"Not that I know."

Geraldo thought for a moment. "Alright, have him work with Damian on Collections for a couple of months. See how reliable he is."

@HeroCooky I may actually be able to finish the third one tonight
Great Holes Secretly are Digged
The fluorescent lights hummed above as he waited for the man in front of him to finish his business, his foot tapping the worn linoleum tiling in a steady beat. Someone coughed behind him once, than twice, and he looked back to see the man behind him staring at him meaningfully. His shoulders were slouched, and his pale face and dripping nose made it clear he wasn't feeling too good.

"Could you uhhh, quit the tapping? Making my headache act up."

Ranjan smiled awkwardly and stilled his foot.

"Of course, sorry."

The man coughed again and nodded gratefully, and Ranjan returned his gaze back to the desk. His heart practically leapt with joy as he saw the man finally step away from the desk, his eyes annoyed as he shoved a bundle of papers into a satchel at his side.

You'd think a town this close to the capital would have better service in their townhall, but oh well.

Ranjan quickly grabbed the note Gopal had given him, cleared his, throat and stepped forward to replace the man. His heart dropped again as he saw just how blank-eyed the clerk manning the desk was. The stacks of paperwork on the side of his workstation made it clear why his greeting was so flat.

"Welcome to Eestahil town hall, what do you need?"

"Can I have access to the records of…"

He quickly scanned the note, masking the confusion in his voice as he read it aloud.

"'Nikolai Nyugen'?"

This guy had a lot going on, didn't he?

A few taps of the keyboard, and then:

"Reason?"

"I'm doing a research project. It's a college thing."

The clerk looked him up and down for a few moments with the faintest expression of scrutiny. Finally, he wetted his lips and typed something on his terminal, a low hum filling the room as it processed the request. After a few seconds he looked back to Ranjan, his voice as flat as ever.

"We have one 'Nikolai Nyugen' on record. Please give us an hour to find the files."

"A hou-alright. Can I sit down somewhere?"

Huh, that worked.

The clerk silently pointed to a collection of particularly uncomfortable looking felt couches shoved away into the corner of the room. Ranjan forced a smile to his face and walked over, a cursory poke at one of the cushions confirming that they were, indeed, uncomfortable.

I really hope this is worth it.

He slowly lowered himself onto the 'couch' and grabbed an out-of-date magazine from the coffee table in front of him, flipping open the worn pages.

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"Sir, the files are ready for you."

Ranjan opened his eyes at the sound of the clerk's raised voice, and looked over to see he was still seated behind his desk with an expectant look. He lifted himself from the couch, did a small stretch, and quickly walked back over to the tired clerk's workstation. The man pointed over his back to a hallway to the right.

"Third door on the left, tell them you're here for the Nyugen files."

"Understood, thanks."

The tired clerk nodded, his face quickly falling back into that flat look as he returned to the man currently in line. Ranjan left him to his work and quickly headed down the hall, idly noting that the floors became cleaner and shinier the second he passed out of the lobby. It was actually a pretty long hallway, and probably ran through most of the building; all of the doors to the left were much more widely spaced apart from each other, so he assumed they kept all the big (and important) rooms away from the exterior walls.

He passed a splitting off hallway before reaching the third door on the left; a regular wooden framed door, the words 'ARCHIVE AND FILES' stenciled onto an opaque window. He gave the door a firm rap of his knuckles and waited. A few seconds later, someone pulled the door open and shoved his head out. He was an older gentleman, with a bushy beard and a flatcap, and he peered down at Ranjan through a pair of small reading glasses.

"Nyugen files I figure?"

"Yes sir."

"Come on in."

The man stepped back and pulled the door open further, and Ranjan gave him a polite nod before entering the archives. It was a very large room with an open floor plan, dominated by hundreds of squat filing cabinets and a few shelves containing boxes upon boxes; of what, he couldn't tell from here.

"You're lucky, y'know? If you'd have come here a year later, we would've moved that lot to long term storage, and then you'd probably have to wait a month to get it."

Ranjan chuckled dryly, his eyes widening a bit as he considered that dread possibility.

"One hour was enough, thank you very much."

"Amit give you a hard time?"

He shook his head, and then spoke up because the man couldn't see him.

"He was just stressed I think."

"I figured, he's been our only guy for a few days. Real shame really, one guy's mom had a stroke a week ago and he has to do full time care for her now, and our other desk guy got into a bad car accident- "

The man continued to ramble good-naturedly as he led him to a well-loved bureau style desk, and he stopped before it to point at a sealed manilla folder near the center, sitting alone from the other stacks of files and folders atop the desktop. Ranjan's eyes lingered on a faded red phrase stamped into the paper; DECEASED, 2273.

"Anyways, here's the folder. No photography allowed, and you gotta wear those gloves while handling it."

He gestured at a pair of thin, oil proof-gloves; Ranjan quickly put them on, already used to the feel of such gloves.

"I'm going to be doing some work in the stacks, just shout if you need me."

"Right, this shouldn't' be too long anyways sir."

The archivist nodded and walked off, adjusting his cap as he went. Ranjan watched him go for a few seconds before sitting down and picking up the folder. He realized his heart was picking up speed as he undid the folder's clasp and slowly reached inside to pull out the first file. The face of an elderly Russian man greeted him, his skin wrinkled and his hair graying, but a small glance at his nose confirmed his suspicions; a long, thin scar, running from his cheek to the bridge of his nose. It was Miss Anand's mysterious visitor.

His eyes wandered down the page, and he slowly took in the clipped, professional life story of a man who died years ago.

Degree in Mechanical Engineering, no family, tenured at सीमांतता Universit-bingo!

He quickly wrote down the name of the university; people did research work at them all the time, and if this guy really was working on something…it'd be the perfect place to look. He skimmed the rest of the file and jotted down his last listed address as well, though he hoped it wouldn't come down to that. Carefully, he slipped the file back into its folder, and called out to the archivist.

"I'm done sir! You want me to do anything with this?"

"Just leave it there, I'll take care of it later."

"Thank you!"

He quickly left the room, a skip in his steps as he walked down the hallway and back into the lobby. He gave Amit a wave on the way out, the man smiling thinly in appreciation, and left the building, immediately heading for his car. He hopped inside the convertible and dug through the dash for his car phone (one of the perks of working for Feline Incorporated), and dialed Gopal's number. It only rang twice before he picked up.

"Did you find something?"

"Everything we need. Meet me at सीमांतता university in an hour; this guy may be the real deal, he had tenure and everything!"

"Awesome! I'll be there as soon as possible!"

His boss hung up, and Ranjan placed the receiver back into its cradle, an excited energy running through his body. For once, this was shaping up to be a good 'adventure'.

EDIT: Fixed Nikolai's year of death