Black Hearts, Part Ten (PG)
Feb. 21st, 2007 07:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jeriendhalTags: Miles, Cordelia, Rufus, Gwen. No warnings.
“How can that boy be a power source?” Miles wondered aloud.
“It's all very complicated,” Brushtail said, “and no one's business except Terinu's. Now then, I think we should concern ourselves more closely with the matter of rescuing our friends and family.
“Rufus, can we trust these people?” Gwen demanded. “They're nuts! This old lady was talking about ripping apart your fighter!”
“Disassemble the White Knight?” Brushtail exclaimed. “Out of the question!”
“Ah, I was hoping to discuss that matter when the situation became more stable,” Miles said carefully. “The fact of the matter is that your fighter is, and I must emphasize this, a unique piece of technology. ImpMil's research division is going to want to examine it and reproduce that drive it carries. Especially given that the chance that Mavra Chan's ship might fall into someone else's...” Miles' voice trailed off, as an idea popped into his head. “Rufus, Mavra Chan's ship uses the same FTL drive as yours, correct?”
“Well, it's a larger unit, undoubtedly built by a different manufacturer, but the operating principles are the same,” Brushtail admitted. “What, do you plan on disassembling hers instead, I hope?”
“I'll bet someone is going to eventually,” Miles said. “Think about it. She sells her ship's drive, hell, she'd just have to sell a copy of the manufacturer's specs to the highest bidder. Whomever wins the bid instantly gains a vast strategic advantage over their neighbors. At least until someone else steals the secret from them. For what Barrayar, or Cetaganda, or even Beta Colony would be willing to pay, she'd make herself rich beyond the dreams of avarice.”
“But how is she supposed to do that?” Brushtail asked. “She'd need to find a neutral broker.”
“Yes,” Miles agreed. “When she hit the liner she undoubtedly downloaded the ship's database, most likely to try and find her bearings.”
“She'd know about the whole jump drive thing you guys use, wouldn't she?” Gwen asked, having calmed down from her earlier rant.
“No doubt,” Cordelia agreed.
“And whether she realizes the pot of gold her drive represents, she's still going to want to find a third-party broker to dump her hostages,” Miles continued. “Which means she's going to head to Jackson's Whole.”
“Where?” Gwen asked, looking confused.
“It was founded by a consortium of pirates who needed a base,” Cordelia explained. "Anything semi-legal or extra-legal can be found there. And it's been useful as a neutral meeting ground for almost all other legitimate interstellar governments, which so far has prevented anyone from invading to clean the rats out.”
“Most infamously House Bharaputra and their cloning business,” Miles added.
“What wrong with making a clone?” Gwen asked. “It's a little weird, but not illegal where I come from.”
Miles' mother actually scowled, a rare expression from her. “When Bharaputra's clones reach your age in physical development, about ten years old in real time, their brains are scooped out to provide a healthy new body for the original genetic donor.”
Gwen's face twisted in revulsion. “That's psycho!” Even Brushtail looked green at the idea.
“Hence its illegality on every civilized world outside the Whole,” Corrdelia said. “Not that it doesn't prevent rich, old, and morally corrupted off-worlders from visiting there to launder their identities and leave wearing their childhood faces.”
“So finding a broker for her FTL drive would be a relatively simple task,” Miles concluded. “Once she convinces the major Houses it's for real, they'll be tripping over themselves to offer her a respectable commission rate.”
Gwen looked disturbed. “One thing though,” she said. “If selling the FTL drive is going to make Chan so stinking rich, why does she even need the hostages?”
“No reason at all,” Miles said into the worried silence that followed her thought. “And all the more reason for us to intercept her, quickly.”
TBC
“How can that boy be a power source?” Miles wondered aloud.
“It's all very complicated,” Brushtail said, “and no one's business except Terinu's. Now then, I think we should concern ourselves more closely with the matter of rescuing our friends and family.
“Rufus, can we trust these people?” Gwen demanded. “They're nuts! This old lady was talking about ripping apart your fighter!”
“Disassemble the White Knight?” Brushtail exclaimed. “Out of the question!”
“Ah, I was hoping to discuss that matter when the situation became more stable,” Miles said carefully. “The fact of the matter is that your fighter is, and I must emphasize this, a unique piece of technology. ImpMil's research division is going to want to examine it and reproduce that drive it carries. Especially given that the chance that Mavra Chan's ship might fall into someone else's...” Miles' voice trailed off, as an idea popped into his head. “Rufus, Mavra Chan's ship uses the same FTL drive as yours, correct?”
“Well, it's a larger unit, undoubtedly built by a different manufacturer, but the operating principles are the same,” Brushtail admitted. “What, do you plan on disassembling hers instead, I hope?”
“I'll bet someone is going to eventually,” Miles said. “Think about it. She sells her ship's drive, hell, she'd just have to sell a copy of the manufacturer's specs to the highest bidder. Whomever wins the bid instantly gains a vast strategic advantage over their neighbors. At least until someone else steals the secret from them. For what Barrayar, or Cetaganda, or even Beta Colony would be willing to pay, she'd make herself rich beyond the dreams of avarice.”
“But how is she supposed to do that?” Brushtail asked. “She'd need to find a neutral broker.”
“Yes,” Miles agreed. “When she hit the liner she undoubtedly downloaded the ship's database, most likely to try and find her bearings.”
“She'd know about the whole jump drive thing you guys use, wouldn't she?” Gwen asked, having calmed down from her earlier rant.
“No doubt,” Cordelia agreed.
“And whether she realizes the pot of gold her drive represents, she's still going to want to find a third-party broker to dump her hostages,” Miles continued. “Which means she's going to head to Jackson's Whole.”
“Where?” Gwen asked, looking confused.
“It was founded by a consortium of pirates who needed a base,” Cordelia explained. "Anything semi-legal or extra-legal can be found there. And it's been useful as a neutral meeting ground for almost all other legitimate interstellar governments, which so far has prevented anyone from invading to clean the rats out.”
“Most infamously House Bharaputra and their cloning business,” Miles added.
“What wrong with making a clone?” Gwen asked. “It's a little weird, but not illegal where I come from.”
Miles' mother actually scowled, a rare expression from her. “When Bharaputra's clones reach your age in physical development, about ten years old in real time, their brains are scooped out to provide a healthy new body for the original genetic donor.”
Gwen's face twisted in revulsion. “That's psycho!” Even Brushtail looked green at the idea.
“Hence its illegality on every civilized world outside the Whole,” Corrdelia said. “Not that it doesn't prevent rich, old, and morally corrupted off-worlders from visiting there to launder their identities and leave wearing their childhood faces.”
“So finding a broker for her FTL drive would be a relatively simple task,” Miles concluded. “Once she convinces the major Houses it's for real, they'll be tripping over themselves to offer her a respectable commission rate.”
Gwen looked disturbed. “One thing though,” she said. “If selling the FTL drive is going to make Chan so stinking rich, why does she even need the hostages?”
“No reason at all,” Miles said into the worried silence that followed her thought. “And all the more reason for us to intercept her, quickly.”
TBC
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-02-22 01:37 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-22 07:51 am (UTC)Yes! Reasoning might just as well get Miles & company there on time! I hope he gets some information off to ImpSec agents over at the Whole, to undermine Mavra, stall her...
Nicely thought-out, Royce!
And...
Mavra Chan's ship uses the same FTL drive as your, correct?
same dive as yours
She know about the whole jump drive thing you guys use
She'd know...
she's still want to find a third-party broker
she'd still...
which so far has prevented anyone from invaded to clean the rats out
prevented anyone from invading to clean...
doesn't prevent rich, old, and moral corrupted
old, and morally corrupted
no subject
Date: 2007-02-23 12:19 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-22 01:33 pm (UTC)