Year – 2037
Main characters:
Verde – Young woman in her 30s, inventor of desalination device used in the C.A. Salt Project. Friends with B. Light.
Calypso – Seasteader in her late 20s.
Seak – Humanoid Male A.I., created by Symphy.
Major Ruin – Extortion-funded order-follower for “US Naval Intelligence”
Episode 1
Scene 1
Over 40 ships gathered in the middle of the Indian Ocean, some are interconnected with each other. It is a free market gathering of Sea Agorists who are all part of the C.A. Salt Project, living permanently on Earth’s oceans. About 300 people are in attendance. The majority of them are watching an intense hoversailing race, which is about to finish, as the 3 lead racers come to the finish line.
An A.I. pod at the end of the finish line records the ending and announces: Winner! By .25 seconds, the ship called “Floating Furball!”
Seak (applauding, leans over to Verde): You seem preoccupied.
Verde: Calyso’s late, very late.
Seak (puzzled): Calypso is usually late.
Verde: Not this much, and this event was her idea.
Seak: Are you (hesitates) worried?
Verde (snappy): Of course I’m worried! (takes shot of tequila off table and shoots it) I’m sorry, Seak. I know you’re not even two yet. What if she was attacked?
Seak: There have been zero known incursions with the gang with fancy titles in the first nine years of the C.A. Salt Project.
Verde: I love that you say gang with fancy titles instead of the “government” euphemism. Symphy taught you well. It’s just that the project is so big now.
Seak: 308 known ships with an undisclosed number of people.
Verde: Probably double that, that’s only those on The Mesh.
Seak: It seems you might be apprehensive regarding an increase in the number of people involved in C.A. Salt. I don’t understand why.
Verde: I know, I shouldn’t be, but bigger means we’re easier to see.
Seak: But government gangs will find out eventually. It is inevitable. Why do humans fear the inevitable?
Verde: I don’t know. That’s a good question. I don’t know how to explain it. We just do!
Seak (frowning): I’m sorry to do this, but I must be going. I’m one of the dealers in the upcoming 3-tier blackjack tournament. Are you playing?
Verde (looking at bottle of tequila, sarcastic): Nah. I’ve got better ways of losing money.
Scene 2: A grim-faced, broad shouldered, middle-aged man is sitting in his home office. He stares blankly and frowns icily at a holographic image of a younger woman in uniform.
Grim-face: Unreal. Who else has access to this information?
Woman: Just you and I, Major Ruin.
Major Ruin: So we have an unregistered ship, of unknown design and build. A hemp field floating out in the South Pacific. The surveillance we set up initially has been wiped out, and we don’t know how.
Woman: That’s correct, sir.
Major Ruin: What happened to the drone that initially spotted and reported this thing?
Woman: Still operable, as far as I know.
Major Ruin: Make sure that drone has backups of its memory made, then wipe it clean.
Woman: Yes, sir.
Major Ruin: This stays between us until I issue you further orders.
Woman: Understood, sir.
Click.
Major Ruin: What the hell is going on out there?
Scene 3
The blackjack tournament has just finished, in the wee hours of the morning, and Peak is walking the deck of his ship, looking at the stars. He receives a call on his internal comm system.
Peak: Yes, who’s calling.
Caller: Jigsaw. I have something you’d love to have. We have 55 seconds.
Peak: Can you tell me specifics, Jigsaw? And how did you get my communication coordinates?
Caller: How I found you is irrelevant. Technology you need, a real game-changer.
Peak: Intriguing. Please send details to the quantum encrypter address I send you.
Jigsaw: No, it has to be in person. I don’t care how good your encryption is.
Peak: In person seems much riskier. I need some specifics.
Jigsaw: I work for Alpha Engineering. Look it up. I’ll contact you again in 24 hours. Time’s up.
Click.
Scene 4
Verde is about to doze off on one of the flex sofas on her ship, The Golden Blue. She is startled awake by an alarm from her ship’s central computer.
Verde: What?!
Computer: Calypso’s ship is docking with yours.
Verde jumps up and springs out to meet her friend Calypso at midship’s first level, where the docking occurs. Calypso is breathless and gives Verde a tight squeeze.
Verde: What happened? You look exhausted!
Calypso: Long story. Have any chai?
Verde: Sure, come on.
They walk to an elevator and go to a kitchen on the top deck. Verde starts to make tea.
Calpyso: I have a problem. We have a problem. Did you paint?
Verde: Forest green, yes. Top deck only. (sarcastic) Is that the problem?
Calypso: So last week I was checking on one of my fields, and I saw a drone hovering over it. So I scanned it. It looked at me, then back at the field.
Verde: What gang’s death cult was it from?
Calypso: Couldn’t get a reading, so I’m guessing CIA, not sure. I did get a reading on some of its capabilities, though, and it was basic enough to make me think it was just a surveillance drone.
Verde: So what did you do?
Calypso: I watched it for a minute. It was taking vid and pics, so I took off.
Verde: I would’ve shot it, or pulsed it.
Calypso: I thought about it…..Anyway, it didn’t follow me. The next day I went back and did a little investigating. Damn thing put waterproof spy gear in my hemp field!
Verde: Shameful! At least they didn’t destroy it, though. So then what?
Calypso: I destroyed their gear, of course. Invade my property like that, how dare they!
Verde: Agreed.
Calypso: So, that’s why I’m almost a day late. And stressed out, and tired, cuz I was paranoid they were gonna come after me.
Verde: Why didn’t you call for help? Or let me know you were running late?
Calypso: Nobody was very close, and also I didn’t want to send comms under the circumstances. Could get traced, who knows?
Verde: The Mesh is quite secure.
Calypso: I know, but I didn’t want to risk it.
Verde: We should talk to Seak.
Calypso: And K and Symphy, too. All the super techie people.
Verde: They couldn’t make it to the event.
Calypso: Figures. K is a recluse, and Symphy’s always busy.
Verde: We’ll talk to Seak tomorrow. Get some rest.
Scene 5
The next morning, Seak gets another call from Jigsaw.
Jigsaw: Did you investigate the company I work for?
Seak: Yes, but most projects are dark it seems, so I know very little. Why have you contacted me? What are your motivations?
Jigsaw: We may discuss that in person. I went through a lot of time and effort to find you. Your project needs to go deeper, and I can help, so our arrangement will be mutually beneficial.
Seak: Deeper?
Jigsaw: You must know how vulnerable you are on the surface. Can you be in Santa Barbara, California in two days?
Seak: Yes, I can.
Jigsaw: Shoreline Park, noon.
Click
Scene 6
Verde: Seak, we need to talk!
Seak: I also have information I wish to share with you. Calypso, nice to see you.
Calypso (grinning): Always so formal….
Verde: Tell him what happened.
Calypso relays the story of the drone.
Seak: A regrettable experience.
Calypso: Such a gift of understatement!
Seak: I was contacted by someone from a company called Alpha Engineering. I had to do some digging, and finally discovered they are a black budget government mob contractor. Jigsaw, the one who contacted me, says he has tech to allow us to go deeper.
Calypso: Go deeper?
Seak: It would be highly beneficial to grow food and possibly live deeper below the ocean surface. Symphy and other Sea Agorists have been working on technology to do so for some time now, but progress has been limited.
Calypso: Strange coincidence, you being contacted by an extortion funded lab while I’m getting harassed.
Verde: Indeed.
Seak: Jigsaw wants to meet in person.
Verde: Where?
Seak: I will go on land, as I don’t wish to reveal my location at sea.
Calypso: You’ve never been on land!
Verde: Please don’t go alone.
Seak (shocked, confused): Why not?
Verde (deep sigh): Look, don’t take this the wrong way, but you’re kind of….
Calypso: Naive.
Verde: Yeah.
Seak looks offended.
Calypso: Obviously, you can go alone, if you want, but we just don’t want anything to happen to you.
Seak: But I have more physical strength, faster reflexes, and….
Verde: Yeah, you’re an A.I. stud, we get it. But you’re only two, and the only people you’ve ever had contact with are Voluntaryists out here on the ocean. They know right from wrong and generally won’t try and harm you. But on land, there are billions of people that don’t know Natural Law. There are order-following moral relativists in costumes causing harm all the time on land. I think a guide for your first time would be beneficial for you.
Calypso: Where exactly are you going?
Seak: Santa Barbara, California.
Verde: I think Ara has a run in that area coming up soon. Maybe she can take you?
Calypso: Yeah, that would be perfect. Girl has street smarts.
Seak: Why can’t one of you go?
Verde: We haven’t been on land in years. It’s better if you have a current land-based person with you, especially a top-notch smuggler like Ara.
5 minutes later, Ara is on a holo-call on Verde’s smart watch.
Ara (pouty face): Are you kidding me? You’re way out there in the Indian Ocean, and I’m in Arizona! I’d have to leave in like an hour!
Seak: I’ll meet you halfway.
Calypso: And you can be dazzled by Seak’s physics knowledge for hours during the trip.
Seak: Was that sarcasm?
Verde: And I’ll double your pay.
Ara: Oh….all right. Send me the coordinates where you want to meet.
Episode 8 coming soon!
Thanks for your time and attention!
Just say "NO" to slavery!
Top image is from pxhere.com
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