Shattered Planes Archives (Seasons 4 & 5)
Saeculum Galaxy => Tefillin => Topic started by: UnStellar on January 29, 2012, 01:22:05 AM
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A call was made to Castle Marks Inc.'s office on Tefillin. The voice on the other end was relaxed, but formal.
"Hello, have I reached Castle Marks Incorporated?"
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A smooth, sultry female's voice answered the line. "This is Castle Marks Incorporated, how may we earn our keep?" She asked.
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"My name is Steven Frost of Straight Deals Incorporated, we are working on behalf of Pleasure Planet, perhaps you've heard of it? We are looking for full time security detail on a large scale. We are handling these affairs for Angelo Zelini." He dropped the name casually, but knew it held great weight. Zelini was a very wealthy man, and if he was involved, the matter just very serious.
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The woman paused for a breath then rushed in. "Why, yes, of course! How large scale are we talking here, though?" She asked.
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"That is something I wish to discuss with someone more important. Patch me through to one of your contractors." He said coldly. He didn't have time for this, he needed to talk to the Big Fish in charge. Zelini wasn't patient, and Frost's boss was pushing for him to close the deal quickly.
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"I... Of course." She said, sounding miffed but patching him through with the highest level contractor. "Yes?" Asked a cold, monotonous voice with mechanical undertones.
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"My name is Steven Frost. I'm working on a high-profile account for Angelo Zevini." He said, mechanically, cutting to the chase. He eyed the notes on his desk that listed the fine details of Zevini's request.
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"Ah, yes, my secretary said Mr. Zevini was wanting some high level protection for Pleasure Planet. How much do you want to protect that area?"
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"Mr. Zevini is looking for a large space presence to protect his investments from Space-borne threats, such as Pirates which are becoming in increasingly prevalent problem. My client wants exterior protection only, he has a Private Security force handling the ship interior itself. It will be outside of your jurisdiction. We are looking for a significant presence to discourage any sort of hostility and give a sense of security to our guests, but should the discouraging numbers alone not be enough to ward attacks, we would like a force that can swiftly deal with the threat with minimal collateral damage. My client is asking for around the clock, full time protection with enough ships to form a small fleet. Pleasure Planet has a large, state-of-the-art docking station which will make rotation and stationing easy. We only ask if you have the means to provide that security, my client requests a significant amount of fighters, a dozen corvettes and at least half as many frigates." He followed his long winded speech with a silent sigh, relieved he spoke it fluently, and took a sip of his coffee.
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"That supply can easily be met, for the right price." The monotonous voice replied evenly. "The standard fee would be approximately half a million credits, but since this is a bulk shipment 475,000 will be sufficient for the time being, this being an annual fee of course."
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Steven easily concealed his shock over the phone. 475 was a bargain, and a much better price then his company had estimated. This would make Zevini very happy.
"I cannot confirm, but 475 sounds like a fair price. How soon can you start the services? Pleasure Planet is being constructed in orbit over Tefillin as we speak, and estimated to it's completion vary from one to two weeks."
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"We can muster troops and ships in a week, and, if you're willing to pay the full half a million credits, we'll through in a capitol ship to help patrol as well." He said, pleased. After all, they didnt get much work so they had to work for a fairly low rate.
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Steven was now having a little trouble containing himself, this was the biggest deal he'd ever landed.
"Uh, how-how about you send us the specs for the capitol ship, and-and we'll get back to you. If all works out, we'll send a group over there by tomorrow to affirm the contract."
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"Data is transmitting... Now." The voice said as it sent over the schematics for the CastleMarks Inc capitol ship they'd be using for defense. "I hope everything is satisfactory."
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Steven took a deep drink of his coffee, and replied after a brief pause,
"Yes! I expect my client will be satisfied. Expect a call from us scheduling a meeting soon. Thank you for your time..." It occurred to Frost that hadn't caught the man's name, and he ended the sentence there.
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"Nowyre. Mr. Nowyre." He reaffirmed his client. "I'll look forward to our partnership Mr. Frost."
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"As are we, Mr. Nowyre. Good bye." Frost hung up, sitting in stunned silence for a second and staring out into his bright future. He then snapped into work mode, forwarding the specs of the Capitol ship to his boss with details on the offered deal. He didn't expect to wait long for a response.
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Mr. Nowhyre put down his comm on his armchair in the black room with the white light and proceeded to get up and grabbed his putter, waiting.
OOC: The next day?
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No more then two hours later, Castle Marks received a call from Frost's secretary requesting a meeting to affirm the stipulations of the contract.
"Mr. Frost would like to close this account as quickly as possible, would after lunch tomorrow be too soon?"
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"That would be absolutely perfect. I'm glad this can come to a speedy and profitable conclusion for the both of us." Mr. Nowyre smiled as he spoke into the comm.
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At 1:30 PM precisely the next day (Or whatever the planetary equivalent was), Frost arrived at the Castle Mark office in a company hover car. Behind were three other gentlemen, and they were all sharply dressed. One of the men wore a very expensive and stylish hat, and they entered the lobby together. Frost lead, and met the secretary without a smile.
"Frost, we have an appointment with Mr. Nowyre."
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She smiled at them. She was a pretty little thing with long black hair and perfect white teeth. "Mr. Nowyre is waiting for you at the Penthouse restraunt down the street gentlemen, you cant miss him. He wears a blue old fashioned tuxedo, is very pale and has coal black hair. He'll wave you over."
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Frost stood still for a second, processing.
"Ah. Thank you." He said, more out of custom then sincerity. "Gentlemen." He nodded, and they followed him down the street. His companions would have enjoyed the stroll, taking in the fresh air, but Frost lead them at a brisk pace, slightly annoyed at the set back. The restaurant was just another hassle in his way. Frost ignored the staff that held the door for him, and met the hostess with only a muffled "Good afternoon."
"My name is Samuel Frost, we have a meeting with Mr. Nowyre." He said, making it sound like an inevitability rather then a question.
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"Ah, yes, right this way."The man said, bowing to them and leading them to the back of the ornate restraunt. In the very back was a plush booth in a U shape with a man, just as the secretary described him, sitting in the middle of the U.
"Hello Mr. Frost. I'm sorry for the slight detour but sometimes the best place for a business deal is one where things can be discussed in private." He said, nodding to waiter who magicked some menus and slid them out into place.
"On me." Mr. Nowyre assured them.
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"Apology accepted, Mr. Nowyre." Frost and his associates sat down, the man with the hat removing it and glancing at the menu.
"We appreciate the offer, but me and my companions just came from lunch. " Due to the informal seating and Nowyre's lack of standing, no hand shakes were exchanged.
"Mr. Nowyre, these are my colleagues Mr. Clark-" He said, pointing to a man with a blue paisley tie, who nodded at Mr. Nowyre. "And Mr. Salve." This time he indicated to a glasses wearing blond man a subtly striped shirt.
"This is Mr. Zalto." He gestured at the last man, who had been wearing a hat. "He is Mr. Zolini's personal attorney, and will be overseeing the arrangements today. Are you ready for negotiations, Mr. Nowyre, or would you rather eat first?"
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"Business before pleasure, my good sir, business before pleasure." He snapped his fingers and the waiter bowed and walked away. Mr Nowyre straightened up and looked each of them in the eye, nodding his hellos. "So where to begin?"
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"We don't want to draw this out any more then it has to be, Mr. Nowyre. We would like to close the deal today and keep the contract simple. Mr. Salve?" Salve cleared his throat and opened up notes on his touch screen tablet. "Yes, Mr. Nowyre I am the contracts expert for this account, so you will be dealing directly with me. Now, to get down to business, we would to know the specific number of Space craft and human assets required for the mission. That means everybody required for a full years worth of protection, down to service and food care. Mr. Zevini will provide the hanger space, barrack space, and other such facilities free of charge in exchange for your services, but you will have to hire help and maintain the ships and docks yourself. You will basically be renting the space from us, though we will subtract the fee from your annual salary as opposed to charging monthly. I believe we forwarded you the specifics on the space you would be allowed on the ship, as well as detailed specs on Pleasure Planet itself. I hope you have an accurate estimation of the manpower needed, as well as the exact amount of spacecraft at your disposal?" Salve asked. He glanced nervously for the hundredth time at the rough outline he had prepared of the contract. If all went well, he'd just have to fill in a few blank spaces, print off the page, and have Nowyre sign, binding the contract. After that, Mr. Zalto would sign off on a blank check signed and authorized by Zevini himself. Salve was already thinking of the after party, wondering if Fiona from Estimates would be there.
His eyes would show his distraction, but he snapped out of his thoughts and focused on Nowyre's response.
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"In the order Mr. Frost relayed to me, he said we would need somewhere around a dozen corvettes and half as many frigates. CastleMarks has set aside two dozen ships, eleven corvettes, twelve frigates and the capitol ship as a bonus. The total crew would be somewhere around twenty five hundred men. If the ships cannot fit on Pleasure Planet itself, the capitol ship will be able to hold the remainder and deploy them routinely. As I discussed with Mr. Frost, our asking price is an annual five hundred thousand credits." Mr. Nowyre said smoothly, staring above his champagne glass at Mr. Salve.
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"I see. You seemed to have missed that Pleasure planet has advanced refueling and external docking harnesses for ships Frigate sized and higher, which we predict would cut back on expenses for your ships and ease maintenance. Though we will honor the bonus capitol ship, we request twelve corvettes and eight frigates. Will any of these considerations effect your overall price?"
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"No, its a bulk price." Mr. Nowyre said, nodding and peering at them calculatingly. "The ships will be ready to move to protect the ship in two or three days time."
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"Very well Mr. Nowyre. Mr. Frost, anything you'd like to add?" Frost shook his head. "Excellent. Mr Zalto, do these terms seem to match your clients desires?" Zalto, a very reserved man, nodded carefully.
"I would like to review the contract before we come to the agreement, but this sounds exactly like my client's demands."
"Perfect. Is there anything else you would like to discuss Mr. Nowyre, or can we begin finalizing the contract?"
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Mr. Nowyre smiled. "No, I believe that was all that was on my list." He said. "I welcome your patronage, good sirs."
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"It's a pleasure, Mr. Nowyre. Clark and Salve, get started on the contract. If you'll excuse me, I'm going to use the restroom." He left promptly and headed directly for them, having noted their location on his way in. He flipped out his phone and made a call.
Salve and Clark had a full contract typed up, based on Salve's own outline. It's three pages can be paraphrased as:
Castle Mark Incorporated is authorized to carry on security detail around the space of Pleasure Planet. The forces authorized include two dozen (24) fighters, twelve (12) corvettes, eight (8) frigates, and (1) Capitol ship. If any of these space craft is damaged or destroyed, Castle Mark Incorporated can replenish their lost numbers by bringing in a precise (but not excess) amount of replacements, and are required to do so within seven (7) twenty-four hour cycles (one Tefillin week). If full strength of force is not maintained for a consecutive fourteen twenty four hours cycles, (two Tefillin weeks), this contract is void. Full strength of force is considered the above listed spacecraft and approximately 2500 employed workers (alternatively, full force of strength can be considered the minimum amount of workers to keep all spacecraft operational simultaneously.) Castle Marks Incorporated is to defend Pleasure Planet from space- and planetary- born threats by any means necessary, and are authorized to use any level of force up to and including lethal actions to defend the health, vitality, and well being of the structure and residents of Pleasure Planet. Castle Marks Incorporated is also authorized the lease of Hanger Bays 1-25 (and all it's various associated functions) and the staff Barracks and facilities in the Aft section of Pleasure Planet's Ship Superstructure.
The last page was dedicated to establishing the boundaries of Castle Mark's authority on Pleasure Planet. Their jurisdiction lay in a certain radius of space around Pleasure Planet and strictly outside of it. They had no authority in hanger bays (except for the ones they were leased) and certainly not in the Biosphere, bridge, or any such area of the Superstructure. They were to take orders from anyone bearing a Pleasure Planet Law Enforcement Officer(PPLEO) ID, no matter the rank. PPLEO's held authority over Castle Mark, even in space which was specifically there jurisdiction. Their orders over took any orders a Castle Mark entity had.
Mr. Zalto took a long time to read the finalized contract, and signed off on it. It was then passed to Mr. Nowyre. Mr. Frost had returned at this point.
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Mr. Nowyre read the contract twice and signed it on the dotted line. "In my position as CEO of CastleMarks Inc. I accept the terms of the contract." He said, pushing the paper back over to them.
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Mr. Zalto nodded, signing the check and filling in 500 thousand credits on the appropriate lines. He handed it to Nowyre without flourish, leaving the table with a quiet, and polite, "Have a nice day."
Frost offered Nowyre a handshake, barely able to conceal the grin. Clark and Salve looked shell shocked.
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Mr. Nowyre shook Frost's hand. "I look forward to guarding your 'planet'." He said, smiling openly. They got a bargain and so did he. He had enough connections to supply CastleMarks Inc.
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"I hope so. This concludes our negotiations, from now on you'll be dealing with Mr. Zelini himself." Finishing the hand shake, Frost stood, his associates doing the same, and they left with excited auras.
There was going to be one hell of a party.
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Mr. Nowyre nodded, smiling and snapped his fingers as they left. It was time for his lunch.