Freeport 10's Research Deck: Commonwealth Research and Development Wing.

[The_Normal_Anomaly]

Datapad still in hand, he skims over the reply, with a bit of a laugh and a frown.

Oh seriously? This man . . . I know he needs to sleep, but . . . seriously? I suppose at least he can keep his verbose nonsense in check when sleep deprived.

The Doctor pauses for a moment, considering what the appropriate tact would be to reply to his boss. The temptation to write some "verbose nonsense" did cross his mind, however a more sane response was decided upon.

===============================================

Sender: Doctor Devious
To: Achille Augustin Nadeau
Re: Remember that first thing I said I would do for you?

Fine, I hope this message suites your needs better.

I had proposed to make you a gift for hiring me. We bantered about what it should be. You were indecisive. I have produced for you a tool of self-defense to compliment your then project of a personal shield generator.

Even most high end blasters are remarkably underpowered, usually owing to their targets not having enough physical or energy shielding to prevent waveform-penetration, particle dispersion, or thermal dispersion capable of defending the subject. It is clear though that this sort of minimalist approach to the craft is not adequate for a personal defense situation, in which energy-shields and effective physical barriers become more likely.

Put simply, I have done to small arms what the Fury class did to the Helios class of Zoner-desigend photon arms. And I am offering you one as a gift.

===============================================

As he finishes the message, he sets a small script to send the message in six hours. Exactly.

[Enkidu]

A secondary distaste of Nadeau’s was misdirected punctuality, a fact that concieved itself in an oh-so- irksome epiphany of a twitching cheek slickened by saliva vibrated, deviating from a position of rest with every thundering oscillation of the PDA, rapidly mutating into a self-sustaining, volatile itch that dug and harried the corner of his mouth.

“…The man’s a Libertonian, not a Rheinlandic automaton, and a rather buffoonesque, uncomely Libertonian at that. An ersatz mockery of Stan Laurel and the Tin Man - a bastard progeny barely recompensed by a whittering smatter of Wright amongst a morass of error messages clotting the arteries of that man’s genetic code…” Achille’s aggressively ailing brain fizzed, spitting foam like a mint-inundated soda can, desensitised from any format of cohesion by the sudden infraction as he glared at the clock, pondering over an innumerable selection of workable rebuttals. Then he actually read the message, instead of merely optically spearing its carrier.


To say Achille relaxed would be disingenuous. Rather, the councillor merely substituted the strain of disdain for the twang of a – carefully metred – elation.

“…Well, it appears the good Doctor has trumped upon yet another method of self-dismemberment...”

===============================================

Sender: A.N.N.
To: Conway
Re: Remember that first thing I said I would do for you?

Oh, Vergillio, I never “hired” you. That was a mere pretence for the purpose of an (unreasonably) plebeian accessible transmission. Rather, I liberated you, to be the man that you always intended, no fine talk here.

Do you not consider it a social quark that a man should be decisive about an alleged “gift”, when such entities are often intended to be birthed of spontaneity? You are not a Thastian legionnaire, ami, but a man of individual spirit. Sometimes, you may take the liberty of jumping without first being commanded to do so, or did you abstain from even scanning our manifesto?

What you have equivocally depicted is an insidious countermeasure to my own (and, rather expensive) active shield emitters. Bravo to your Machiavellianisms.


My first concern is one of mass, the second; dimensions, the third; energy bleed and hardware longevity, the last (and perhaps, least concerning, cost). One does not merely re-invent the assault laser without a significant rebalance of these quandaries.

But you have my interest piqued; examining the exact methodology you chose to utilise to negate the shield dissipation effects will be intriguing. Increased motive load? Then you risk falling fowl of the above predicaments. Of course, in a fantastical universe, the answer would be frequency modulation, but this is not a universe of sub-par science fiction, rather one of actuality.

Oh, and congratulations, Doctor – you have provided the fraternity with a service. Send me a functionally unexploded clone of the prototype and I’ll in turn bequeath you with a holistic appraisal.

Fine work ami, assuming that it, well, works.

===============================================

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THE SYNDIC LEAGUES
(A co-operative of Rheinland's outlawed trade unions, determined to take the underworld for themselves.)

Information | Recruitment | Message Dump |
Feedback | Diplomatic channel

(Links pending redevelopment).

[The_Normal_Anomaly]

Waking up from the chime of an incoming message, he raises his head off of his desk. Reading quickly over the response, he taps out a short response.

---

===============================================

Sender: Doctor Devious
To: Achille Augustin Nadeau
Re: Remember that first thing I said I would do for you?

I am sure you are aware that you present a capricious nature. I would have rather kept it if you were not in the mood to accept the object. That said, I of course have one of my own. No sense in not producing two if I truly have faith in the design.

As to your concerns.

1. Its mass is acceptable.
   
2. It uses a common form factor.
   
3. Its lifetime is within average to better than average parameters.

I almost take these questions as an accusation. I would not present such unfinished work to others.

I'll be in the range momentarily, if you happen to have the free time and a free hand to try your new toy out.

===============================================

[Enkidu]

The reply resounded rapid, fast, no delay other than that which's sender took to pen. No games, not now. Not when tang of progress was yanking at his tongue.




===============================================

Sender: A.N.N.
To: Doctor Devious
Re: Remember that first thing I said I would do for you?

1) Acceptable is subjective - a figure is not.

2) Then the device is actually viable as an infantry weapon? Excellent.

3) Better than average operating perimeters are the average operating perimeters desirable for the weapon to bear any merit over pre-existing designs, be mindful.

Very well Devious. Allocate us both an hour to freshen up, and I'll see you on the range. Note, both articles will already be present on the range, equidistant from the entrances. Entrances are coded to us alone, if this does not perturb you?

Gregar will accompany me, and as for you… well. You need not share the space. Three being the finer number, correct?

To success, Devious. Nothing more, and certainly nothing less.

===============================================

---

THE SYNDIC LEAGUES
(A co-operative of Rheinland's outlawed trade unions, determined to take the underworld for themselves.)

Information | Recruitment | Message Dump |
Feedback | Diplomatic channel

(Links pending redevelopment).