Partially redacted copy of a Company Letter to the Duchess of Mora

From the Desk of Larzamonte Charoux, CEO of Artemis Group, to the Esteemed Duchess of Mora; It is regrettable that our first correspondence since my taking of the company’s command is under such woeful circumstances. As you can well imagine, our condolences are as weighty as the feeling of loss in our own hearts at the likely loss of Colonel Lloyd Robertson. I assure you, hats will be held. The investigation into the Colonel’s death has likely gone as far as it can: The Colonel’s biometic transaction bracelet was severely damaged; what little useful data that could be recovered from the device is as follows: [Redacted] Some trace amounts of biological material was found on the bracelet in between the links of the chain; at the very least, this indicates that a body was wearing the bracelet at the time of the nuclear detonation; if this were merely a coverup of a kidnapping plot, the forces responsible would likely not have taken the time or the risk to the larger mission to kill someone else for the sake of leaving evidence behind; the vagueness of evidence in either case would not change the conclusions reached by the optimistic, pessimistic, or purely evidence based. Regardless, I will remain vigilant to maintain awareness of the extremely unlikely possibility that the Colonel was , in fact, kidnapped. Analysis of what little data a sample of the biological material provided is as follows:  [Redacted] Analysis of the veracity of the holovideo footage sent to Simone [Redacted],  our ship’s Doctor, is as follows:  [Redacted] Analysis of the correspondence between the captured holovideo footage and the detonation is as follows:  [Redacted] The unmistakable conclusion is that the Colonel is  [Redacted] The collateral damage to Darrian is quite extensive. It certainly would have been even more unfortunate if the detonation happened in a more densely populated area. The strategic loss of retired elders is... mostly subjective, and there are valid arguments on many sides. Ultimately, we will likely never know the true extent of what we have lost. The matter of dealing with Captain Maarg is a complex one. Naturally, the Darrian Confederation would prefer to remain on good terms with the Imperium, and so, has accepted the offered terms of “capture, not kill”. It is the opinion of many in the Darrian Confederation that Maarg is too dangerous to be allowed to remain alive. Many in our Company share this opinion, but we have elected to accept the ticket as proposed. I myself am uncomfortable with this position, but am trying to support our company through this trying time regardless. I would, however, be so bold as to ask: What is the justification for allowing this seemingly unnecessary risk to civilian lives that capturing him alive requires? As a former Agent for the Darrian Confederation, I am well aware that providing a straightforward answer to this question may have strategic consequences that are unacceptable to your goals. However, a merely sufficient answer may lend comfort to those members of our company who will no doubt find swallowing the bitter pill of leaving Maarg alive trying in current circumstances. Please, do what you can to explain the circumstances behind this difficult limitation on our services. With the utmost regard, Larzamonte Charoux CEO of Artemis Group

It’s redacted mostly where I don’t know or remember the answer. Presumably, all the evidence lines up to the extent that it can .

Since this letter was sent out when Charoux was still on Darrian, its travel time, consideration by the Duchess of Mora, response draft and return trip will mean an answer most likely after the Return to Bowman Incident.  It also assumes Artemis Group will be alive to receive it at that time.

Gotta tell you, TT, this was an ill-conceived move. I don't know whether or not we're supposed to know about this communique, but when Sebastien finds out (and he will find out) that you've gone "over his head" in this matter, he will be... disappointed. More to the point, however, and more important, is the fact that this is supposed to be a confidential Ticket. Sebastien was very clear when he first even approached Artemis Group, that HE was offering you the ticket. He even paid you with HIS money. Yes, he has a Warrant from from the Duchess and other Spinward Marches authorities, authorizing him to officially investigate the matter of the Colonel's death and to generally wield the authorities of the Warrant's issuers. He was even given the option  of hiring Artemis Group, if he decided to do so. The whole reason that the nobles wanted somebody like Sebastien to handle this matter, rather than some more official arm of the Imperial apparatus, was in the hopes that their personal involvement could be as unofficial as possible. For reasons that you as Sebastien's subcontractor did not need to know . 

From a different tangent, Isis' Vengeance Ticket is by default a secret Ticket as well.  She's paying big bucks to have the Artemis Group  hunt down the assassin and/or Maarg and get revenge for the death of Col. Lloyd Robertson.  If this missive is indeed a secret letter to the Duchess and Isis does not hear about it, then all is well so long as no one spills the beans to her.  But....she is Zhodani.  And any female aboard the Ares  will be able to tell that she was in love with the late Robertson. Whether the Duchess accepts Charoux's letter as official from the Artemis Group  or as a former Agent of the Darrian Confederation is ambiguous, from what Pakkrat can determine.  Then there is the question of whether the Duchess will answer at all, for security, for personal feelings or bias, for diplomatic considerations, for relations between the nobility and a 'mercenary' corporation of now-dubious reliability, et cetera, ad infinitum ad nauseam. Note also that Charoux initiated this letter to the Duchess of Mora, not the other way around.  While it was known to ASS that Col. Robertson was noble and good but distant friends with the Duchess of Mora, whether the Artemis Group  has the functionality or jurisdiction to initiate such a report is questionable.  Try and look at this from the Duchess' point of view.  She will receive news from more than one source now.  What is she to believe?  Who is she to trust?   Let's look at the facts: The Duchess can safely suspect that Col. Robertson became involved with a Zhodani woman. Propaganda touring rock band from the Julian Protectorate have been clients of ASS, who have returned un-challenged to where they came from. There are ethnic Vargr from Gvurrdon Sector on the Ares  during the Fifth Frontier War. An attache of the Duke Norris of Regina is somehow involved because of a mission that Robertson undertook from a nosy magazine reporter from the Vargr Extents. Client States systems in Glisten and District 268 subsectors have reported the dockings and goings of the Ares  under the command of Col. Robertson.  She's been conducting her own clandestine investigations and wanted to learn more of her errant friend. The Colonel bought out of the Artemis Group and now he's at the very least missing. Col. Robertson is assumed dead. The  Artemis Group  was nowhere close to give aid to her friend, the Colonel. A nuclear detonation on Darrian has occurred. Does one see how badly this paints everyone involved, even the Darrians? Now, as the GM, I can very well see each character's motives and personality, attempts at damage control, assumptions that may or may not be hanging over the heads of the Artemis Group , Captain Maarg, Wypoc, the Duke of Regina (who is mopping up the 5FW right now), and the other nobles who were somewhat competing rivals at one point before the Duke assumed Admiralty by firing Adm. Santanocheev.  So, know that each player will play their character impulsive, reserved, heroic, conservative, dutiful, rebellious, miserly and ambitious.  The Pakkrat applauds such individualism in role-play.  It takes just one hero to sink an outfit like the Artemis Group.   Just imagine if Gevaudan had failed a single one of those 10 Ship Turns in the Return to Bowman Incident, ("Into the Labyrinth").

First of all, as the CEO of Artemis Group, Charoux was obligated to send the Duchess a report on the investigation into Colonel Lloyd Robertson’s death. So, no matter what, he was sending something . Charoux respects that the Duchess wants answers about her missing friend, and would honor the Colonel’s memory by providing them. On the subject of Sebastien’s ticket, it was my understanding that he was offering us that ticket on the behalf of the Nobles undersigned on the warrant. And rest assured, Charoux sent that message with the usual ridiculously overpowered encryption, so as to keep the required level of secrecy; let me know if you want a roll for it. If, however, the ticket was being offered to us exclusively through Sebastien, that was the result of a misunderstanding on my part as a player, and I can certainly correct the letter to account for that. But, generally speaking, Charoux’s loyalty is to the company (and by extension Isis) first, Darrian second, and the Duchess third. Given the stakes involved, Charoux wants to be certain that taking Maarg alive is worth the risks of not simply ending him; after all, the last time we left things to chance, one of us was killed, and several civilians along with him. As far as Crow’s goals as a player go, I do apologize if your getting on the good side of the Nobles has been interfered with. With regards to Isis, Isis is not mentioned in the letter at all . Nor is the letter any untrue in the case of none of it being about her. With or without Isis, I suspect most of the company would still want Maarg dead. Charoux would rather be up-front about that, and would prefer to hold back only if there were a greater good that necessitated it, which he has not yet been informed about.

Actually, as CEO of Artemis Group you have absolutely no obligation whatsoever to the Duchess. You have no relationship with her. Period. If anybody in Artemis Group had any reason to contact the Duchess regarding the Colonel's Death, it was Jacob, as an Imperial and a military officer. Which he did, as you were told. As far as the Ticket is concerned, yes, you did misunderstand the situation. I'm not sure how many times you would have needed to hear the words "unofficial" and "discrete" for that to be clear. As far as the stakes involved, you clearly have absolutely no idea what the stakes are. Else you would have at least run this letter by the Imperium's representative aboard your ship, you know, your employer, before you acted.

And, btw, The crack about my relationship with the nobles is patently stupid. I've already jeopardized my relationships with the Imperium by both of my characters to cover your ass.

No, that wasn’t a crack, I genuinely thought that is what you were complaining about. Characters can have all sorts of ambitious reasons to do things. When someone dies, it’s up to the people who knew that person best in their final days to let everyone else know. Isis arguably knew the Colonel better than anyone on board, but she can’t just go writing the Duchess. As the head of the company he started, that obligation falls on Charoux. While it is certainly arguable, Charoux has a duty to honor the Colonel by letting the Duchess know as best he can what has happened. While the mission ticket may have been unofficial and discrete, the part that was not clear was from whom ; if the Duchess was genuinely the customer, she may well have wanted regular updates. Again, I thought you were merely offering us the ticket on the Duchess’s behalf. Clearly, that was in error. The part that is bugging Charoux right now is that we have two tickets that may ultimately wind up at cross-purposes; only circumstances will tell. Charoux would rather the company not be caught in the middle of a damned business decision mid-combat; people die that way. Additionally, there’s a lot of emotional drama at stake; having to pick between the feelings of Isis, Dr. Simone, the rest of the crew, the lives of innocent civilians, and some lousy wad of cash mid-combat is a sure-fire way to do things you (our characters) may regret for the rest of your (their) life. On a related note, consider how bad an idea it is to piss off the company doctor on a planet with acidic atmosphere. And then there’s how the plan for “capture him alive” is going to look nothing like the plan for “leave him dead in a smoking crater of ash”, and the secret meetings we would require in order to make one plan look like the other would get both tiresome and awkward. Charoux would rather make sure everyone can stay on the same page for a variety of reasons, many of which boil down to “keeping your head in combat”, but also include keeping his crewmates from jumping into a lifelong depression over “what we should have done”, and even wanting to keep the Company intact on his watch of it. So while Charoux isn’t about to go against everyone’s decision, if he can get the ticket adjusted somehow, as the head of the company, he’s going to try.

Regarding Charoux's obligation to let the Duchess know that the Colonel was dead, after he was told that Jacob had already done so, and after the group had accepted a Ticket that he supposedly thought came from the Duchess to investigate the Colonel's murder, I can only scratch my head. I agree that the terms of Sebastien's ticket, and the terms of Isis' ticket as well, need to be better defined. I suggest that we take care of that at this week's meta session. I'd also like to discuss why Charoux needed to send a "Company Letter" without letting anybody else in the company know about it, and after everybody else had already outvoted him to accept the ticket as it was offered. You say that "Charoux isn't about to go against everyone's decision," but that's exactly what he did. The fallout of that remains to be determined. I also agree it's true that Artemis Group may have 2 tickets that are at cross-purposes. As I said, we should nail down the details about them at meta, and try to all agree on a way forward.