Only one picture today.
No crying, it is against the Cargo Requisition Allocation Protocols (C.R.A.P.).
One drawer of a standard morgue coldbox used to ship the dead. Mass of 100 kilograms including the box and bodybag, with an optimally loaded cargo bay, about 2.1 Credits per AU with DeuTylium fuel. First out to the SNG (Space Navigator Guild) transit nexus terminus then to Colchester in White Sun. Travel is relatively cheap if you're inert.
Just one drawer, one of 18 in the morgue coldbox container, one of many coldbox containers, of many kinds of cargo we are hauling to 34 Tauri today. Just doing the rechecks before we unmoor the frigate and head out. Procedure, protocol, stuff like that. I don't normally check all of the drawers.
I work the numbers in my head to keep from thinking about the cargo. I make jokes or I work spreadsheets in my head when I am stressed. No jokes today.
This is Jade, she's cargo now.
Jade lived her life with the world against her, born a 'moon-baby', her mother's exposure to some mine chemicals caused her to be born albinos with a wonky immune system. The superstitious people on the moon gave her to job of being the disposable child. "What is the life of one moon-baby?" I never liked it when she said that.
They sold her off to some organ-leggers to buy farmland for their village on the surface of the moon. These organ-leggers planned to exploit the Jade's unique moon-baby immune system to grow and harvest organs for other people. The organ-leggers told them a fanciful fairy tale of a life of education and for Jade to ease their conscience, but in reality they sold her to a life destined to be lived out in vats and cutting tables.
Jade got lost and robbed in Persephone, but in this case that was fortunate. Good fortune smiled on her with Calina, Darrian and some other decent folks on Eavesdown Docks. Jade lived out of Calina's fine dress shop back then and Jade helped her out plus busy with whatever odd jobs and such she could find in the ugly backwater of the famed gateway to the rim. I bought a great outfit from her, she even knew my favorite color. Jade time in Eavesdown Docks was colored by fear that the organ-leggers would find her or that her village would have to give back the money and lose their land or that that the law would....you know....crap that happens.
I lost touch with her when she moved to Botany Bay, although I knew she was there as it was part of my regular route, I never ran into her while I was there. I am sure she made lots of friends. I saw her on Hale a couple times during that period. When she came to Al Raqis is when we got to see each other more often. She quickly learned how to prospect for the Araxes desert spice, how to gather water from the vaporators and fix the refinery and all sorts of things. Plus always busy with some project or another that she found around. Soon, she was a top prospector and mechanic. She worked on other projects too, a great sand-glider. We watched bats fly and beetles scurry around attacking mercenaries, good times.
Jade ran afoul of the Orions and the Orchid, she was attacked and hospitalized. Public opinion moved strongly against them after that.
Calina was looking after Jade, but this was a systemic problem. It was becoming too dangerous, we had to find better ways to deal with the problem.
Jo was kidnapped shortly thereafter. We were shocked, this was a big deal to us. No one had harmed any of our people before. Jo, Opine, Calina, Jade, Tiller, etc, are not Zenobians, some were even their own factions. But they were from 34 Tau and we felt responsible for their welfare. We were the de facto local consulate for the Union of Allied Planets, we had to change how we operated in the area.
We mobilized what assets we had. Increased surveillance on certain persons, worked our network of contacts, even military recon. We had been adverse to mobilizing military personnel, but this was 2 citizens in 2 weeks. We activated a Condoterro to contract third party assets to intervene. Zeno used her seat on the Landsraat Council to lobby for an anti-slavery act to punish the Orions and people who think like them.
None of it was not enough, we had to find a better way to change things.
Opine, Jo and I made a decision that ultimately led to Jade's death, we encouraged Jade to run for elected office. The Imperium had recently decreed a democratically elected council as a counterpart for the Landsraat in the Al Raqis legislature, the Beit Dawla. Jade knew a lot of people because she spent more time on the ground than almost anyone. She won by a landslide, more votes than the next 3 candidates combined.
Jade was timid at first, but when AR Pharma began producing a cure for the blackpox that used the blood of natives, it was an issue very close to Jade's own personal tragedy. Jade was on fire with rage, you were with her or against her. And many were against her. She swore she would protect the people of Araxes with her own life as necessary, "What is the life of one moon-baby?" I wished she wouldn't talk like that.
The Landsraat did what maneuvering they could to circumvent the issue, condescending and arrogant in their position of power. Finally, Jade swore out an arrest complaint against the entire Landsraat Council. A political gesture, I don't think anyone expected anything to come of it, including myself. It was a heart stopping surprise when an Imperial Inquisitor decided to endorse the warrant albeit for his own purposes. Even Zeno and Calina were put under arrest. With the endorsement of the Imperium, even the Chief Magistrate quietly submitted to house arrest.
That is probably what put the wheels in motion that led to her death. It was an affront that certain murderous minded people couldn't let stand.
It was out of our hands now, with the Imperial Inquisition in place neither the Chief Magistrate, the Landsraat, the Beit Dawla or even Jade could undo the arrests. It would have to play out by Imperium rules. I have no idea what those rules are, but they involved following the forms.
With the Landsraat under arrest, the Beit Dawla took over the running of the government. We passed the legislation outlawing police actions without government authorization and outlawed the blood cure and made the cure freely available, then we lifted the blockade.
I focused on trying to find a way to get Zeno out of jail, I did not think about keeping Jade safe. She was very cavalier about it. Then she was murdered.
I still don't have any clue who murdered Jade. A fellow delegate on the Beit Dawla, Lady Skhmet, is aggressively investigating the murder. I don't know how Lady Skhmet feels about Jade, she is fairly inscrutable, but she seems very sincere about finding the murderer. She has some leads, haters who were angry about the Beit Dawla in general and Jade in particular. There are other suspects, I left it to Skhmet to deal with. Today, I am just hauling cargo.
With Jade dead, the case against the Landsraat was severely weakened. The Landsraat resumed their seats with an oath to please the Imperium. The revolution was over. My last act as chairwoman of the unitary governing body was to order Jade's autopsy.
The UAP made a separate deal with the Inquisitor, so Zeno was finally out after 33 days in jail. We didn't really say much, welcome, hugs, then back to the Maison. Zeno got something to eat, then took a bath with the teddy bear named Tillery that Jade gave her while she was in jail.
We failed Jade.
I got the coroner's report today and Calina agreed to let me transport Jade to Colchester. I sent off a copy of the coroner's report to Zeno and Calina and left.
Jade was a good person, a dear friend, a heroic public figure....but now she is just cargo. I guess not JUST cargo, I don't cry about other cargo.
Friday December 2nd, 9:30 am SLT (Standard Local Time) I departed Araxes and headed to Colchester with a full load of cargo, including Jade. She's cargo now.
Posts
