Fangor the Fierce said:
"No, you misinterpret. I mean that whatever this is, it WILL change the cosmic balance of everything."
Wren shifts to the Gunner, hoping he can shed more light on the this subject.
"We have a few options. First, we can try to find this thing, and destroy it. Or, we could find the people that would be using it, or know how to use it, and take them out. Without that knowledge, the destruction of this thing can wait, as nobody would have the intent of knowledge to complete the job. We might have to call in some reinforcements, and with the recent events, those are slim to none. So, information is what we need. And this guy has it. So, either talk, Gunner, or we make you talk..."
It's no longer time for the nice guy routine. This guy knows something, and we need that information now. Hopefully someone here can make him talk... I know I can't. Unless we do it the really hard way..
Jacobson meanwhile has been communicating with HQ, and says "Mr. Black says take the deal."
(once you presumably do...) Gunnar talks...and talks, and talks, and talks... :
"I agree to your terms regarding the United Nations. I am certain that they will be interested in trying me. Here is what I've got that you would be interested in:
For one, this device is highly-customized, and only parts were being manufactured at that facility. Shutting it down will slow production but no information was lost. The designs exist at the Foundry's central facility and other remote backup areas. Your focus should not necessarily be on the Foundry, though. We are doing the heavy industrial work, building a very strong tower, a big drill, some sturdy power conduits and other infrastructure.
The exotic stuff is being manufactured elsewhere, and I know the black market supertech industry as well as anyone.
For the nano-turbines, a professor named Herman Fine who was working on those matters disappeared recently, just before he was to announce his results. I believe that he was taken by a man named Sabir Asad, who I believe may be tied to Labrys Industrial Industries in Zurich, or possibly Grant Industries in the United States. I know he was so close because Asad beat our man to him. The Foundry wanted his technology as well.
I don't know where he would find the radiation-absorbing technology, although I had heard rumors of a super-assassin kicking around the mideast with technology of that sort. Some radiation controller, trigger-happy with the toasting. Unknown who she works for, but considering the wide variety of folks in the region she's incinerated, and the fact that she's against Barrington rules out Iran, I'd bet she's either an enforcer for some crime syndicate or some kind of Black Ops type -- probably American or Israeli, but maybe Russian.
I don't know how it fits in the the larger device, if at all, but this morning I found out that they were also looking for a hyperdrive. Apparently they had acquired one from some ancient ship they found in Egypt, and were hoping that Daedalus' database in the Lighthouse had what they needed to fix it or build another, but it didn't have what they needed. Apparently Daedalus' alien designed required parts or materials not available on earth.
it seems they had some other specific requirements for how it works, for interfacing, and for the level of understanding they would need of it. I got the sense that they were going to be using it for some other purpose than moving a ship faster than light. I'm not sure where they would find one on the black market, but if they were to steal one, or the technology to produce on on earth, I'd suspect they would go to Salt Lake City."
Those with the right knowledge skills understand why. While many society-changing, overly-labor-saving technologies such as matter constructors are illegal in most of the USA and Europe, the federal laws banning them all have exceptions for Utah. Back when the first was being passed through congress, the LDS Church argued that since they believe that God is located out in the cosmos near a planet called Kolob, that laws restricting access to technology useful for space travel that exist for economic rather than security reasons violate their First Amendment rights to free exercise of religion. Rather than risk a lawsuit that would set a precedent that could seriously undermine the law, and knowing that there are not likely any spacefaring religions with nearly as much wealth or established legitimacy as the Mormons, Congress carved out an exception for Utah in return for the LDS Church agreeing not to sue on behalf of their followers in other states. Ultimately, the first earth-made hyperdrive engine was manufactured for the Brigham Young, a space cruiser currently out somewhere searching for Kolob. A number of nations have military spacecraft, but it is unclear if any of them have such technology.
Gunnar continues
"Also, you can reverse-engineer the simulations to get partial specs for the tower's internal power generation. Perhaps Daedalus will know which of his power generation technologies Barrington is stealing.
I also gave Barrington a bit of a referral when he was hiring those terrorists. there is this arms dealer and tactician for hire named Anatole Voderac who operates from a cloaked cargo ship in the mediterranean. Once I am in UN hands, I will give up coordinates and a time when you can find him. He will know the details behind a number of Barrington's terrorist acts and connections, and I believe Barrington set up a huge buy for Hamas from Voderac before that last wave of attacks."
