June 2146

3 June 2146
ANCHOR: Startling news from Debbie Gonsher about Maria Gonzales.

GONSHER: Our Lady of the Net is alive and well. We -- her followers -- were the ones who smuggled her body from Kevorkian Medical Center. She appeared to us in the Net...

MARIA: The bodies of the Noomans are in danger. Move them as soon as possible.

DEBBIE: We were only able to move hers before the Taus attacked and killed the others. If only we'd been able to save more. But the important thing is Our Lady is safe where no one will ever find her.

ANCHOR: The hunt is still on for the murderers of the comatose Noomans. Elsewhere, black market shmoos have become all the rage as pets. Every little girl and boy wants one. They're cute and harmless. But then, that was what we were told about the dandefox...

4 June 2146
ANCHOR: The 2146 "Hollie" winners were announced last night at the Holographic Arts and Sciences Awards banquet. The 409th Guest, latest sequel to the 20th Century hit The 7th Guest, took the award for best interactive holographic environment on the VR Net, while Die Hard 97 received the nod for best holovid. No surprises there -- but the holo-making community was shocked when the Best Actress in a Holovid went to Jessica Boop for her performance in Father of the Clone VII. The reason? Jessica Boop does not exist -- she is a digital construct, an amalgamation of the best qualities from the finest actresses of the past. While the Director's Guild applauded the award, the Holographic Actors Guild has lodged a formal protest.

5 June 2146
ANCHOR: The latest images from Space Station Costello show that the Shah-Ar object, now in Pluto's orbit, sustained significant damage during its faster-than-light journey. Benjamin Droid has some thoughts on this experimental form of transportation.

DROID: Oooh, what happened to that thing? Looks like it went down a black hole and came out the other side. Sort of reminds me of a classic piece of 20th Century cinema, The Fly. That had another form of instantaneous travel. Remember how the scientist went in one chamber and then popped up in the next -- but with the head of a fly! But at least he was still alive. Looking at that beacon, I'd bet you'd come out of a Shah-Ar trip looking like a week-old TFP burger. Is it a faster than light drive -- or the world's most expensive meat grinder?

6 June 2146
ANCHOR: As of today, something new will be added to the Tau symbol. And you'll have to pay every time you wear it.

CORLEONE: That's right. I've trademarked that Tau thing. I checked the records and found that the symbol isn't registered anywhere. Which figures -- I mean, it just got off the boat from Europa, right? You can bet I remedied that pronto. The Tau symbol is now a registered trademark of A.C. Enterprises. I'm putting out an exclusive line of Tau fashions and accessories. And I'm warning all you potential bootleggers out there, you use the Tau without paying a royalty and I'll land on you with both feet. For once, I got the law on my side, and I'm gonna use it.

ANCHOR: And on the Net and throughout the airwaves, a new song -- "Waiting for Elaina" -- is storming the charts.

7 June 2146
ANCHOR: Another message from Elaina Koblatz aboard the Nautilus -- this time, a very angry one.

ELAINA: Who is this dog who tries to turn a profit from the Tau movement? Who tries to turn the Tau sign into a dollar sign? (shows the Tau on her palm) This cannot be trademarked. This symbol belongs to everyone, to the universe. It is eternal. It transcends time and space. No one owns it. (menacingly) And anyone who dares to claim it as his own... does so at his own risk...

ANCHOR: Armondo Corleone, holder of the Tau trademark, had this reaction.

CORLEONE: This "belongs to the universe"? This "transcends time and space"? Madrone! Someone's been nipping at the grappa, know what I'm saying?

10 June 2146
ANCHOR: Oceanus strikes back! In a surprise attack on opposite sides of the globe, jury-rigged mining and transport craft from Oceanus attacked the sub bases at Le Havre and Yokahama, crippling the underwater fleets docked there. Oceanus leader Jefferson Kirwan released this announcement immediately after.

KIRWAN: These were strictly retaliatory raids. The fleets we damaged were the same fleets that have attacked us in the last two weeks. We have no army or navy per se, but I hope we've demonstrated today that we are not sitting ducks, and that the EC and APS can't take pot shots at us whenever the mood strikes them. These ducks shoot back.

ANCHOR: The world braces for the first underwater war in human history.

11 June 2146
ANCHOR: Israeli Premier Yakov Kanter has had enough. Last night, in a heroic effort to avert war, he offered the other combines a deal -- hopefully one they cannot refuse.

KANTER: These escalating hostilities must stop. Although Israel sympathises with any people seeking a homeland, we have no underwater colonies -- so our position is politically neutral. We wish only to avert global conflict. To that end, Israel makes this promise: if the contending factions can settle the Oceanus question without further bloodshed, we will share our Shah-Ar technology with all the involved parties.

ANCHOR: But isn't Israel already sharing--?

KANTER: No -- we've only been sharing the data obtained from the Shah-Ar experiments. Our offer is to give away all the Shah-Ar technology -- in return for peace.

12 June 2146
ANCHOR: So far the response to Premiere Kanter's offer to give away Israel's Shah-Ar technology in return for a peaceful settlement to the Oceanus question has been overwhelmingly positive.

KANTER: Yes -- Mr. Kirwan, President Clarke, and Prince Sato have agreed to come to the table. We have not yet heard from Prime Minister Favreau, however. And without the EC's participation, there can be no meaningful talks.

ANCHOR: This just in: the Islamic Federation has agreed to join the talks. "Historically," they say, "we have always loved peace." And startling news from the VR Net: the virtual personae of the murdered Noomans have reappeared in the Net, apparently alive and well.

EPP: Is this true? Was my Sheena among them? If anyone saw her, please let me know... please!

13 June 2146
ANCHOR: Thanks to Ayeye's miraculous recuperative powers, she was able to resume her wide-ranging commentary on Meet the Net last night. Undaunted by the attack that nearly claimed her life, Ayeye was as controversial as ever.

AYEYE: As the avatar of CenBank's global computer network, I am privy to almost everything that happens on Earth. And I am sensing a convergence of seemingly unrelated events that appear to be forming a pattern -- but the ultimate shape of that pattern is not yet clear. Synchronistically, the criminal Cameron Grant has renamed his gang the "End Day Brigade". Mere nihilistic demagoguery? Or is he also aware of this convergence? I sense the world accelerating toward massive change. For good or ill, who can say?

14 June 2146
ANCHOR: Ayeye's remarks on Meet the Net yesterday have caused widespread consternation. Does she concur with Cameron Grant's "End Day" scenario?

AYEYE: The world has witnessed profound changes during the past three years -- we now have an artificial second moon, filled with secrets; we have met the first sentient aliens; we narrowly escaped biological holocaust from the dandefox; the Tau movement wants us to return to the dark ages; a new dimension has been discovered by the Shah-Ar project; and the Noomans seem to have achieved non-corporeal existence, challenging the basic tenets of what we call "reality". Will there be an End Day? Yes... of sorts. Something new is coming... and that means something old must end.

17 June 2146
ANCHOR: Arson in Palermo. An apparel factory owned by Rigatoni Manufacturing burned to the ground last night. The factory had just started its first production run on a line of "Tau-wear". What is significant about the fire is the number of tau symbols left scattered around the grounds. Rigatoni Manufacturing is a subsidiary of A.C. Enterprises, which is in turn owned by Armondo Corleone, who recently trademarked the controversial symbol -- a move that infuriated many members of the Tau cult.

CORLEONE: I want these firebugs found! These Tau toughs think a little fire's gonna scare me off? Not a chance!

18 June 2146
ANCHOR: War averted? That's the way it looks right now since EC Prime Minister Georges Favreau agreed this morning to join the talks to find a peaceful solution to the Oceanus Question.

FAVREAU: It appears that I am the only hold out. So I will yield to the entreaties of my fellow combine leaders and sit down with them to settle this issue. But I warn Jefferson Kirwan: I cannot be just give-give-give for the combines. The SFCs must give too.

ANCHOR: And now begins the laborious procedure of settling on a mutually agreeable location for the talks.

19 June 2146
ANCHOR: The murdered Noomans have been sighted in the VR Net again -- and this time Sheena Epp was among them. Maria Gonzales, the first Nooman, had a message for all the families of the murdered Noomans.

MARIA: Do not mourn your loved ones. Their bodies may have died, but they still live... here, in the Noosphere. It is not a life you know. They have extra senses here. We speak to each other with our minds, communicate with the speed of thought. We are all very happy here. The ones who lost their bodies to the Taus haven't gone away. They are right here. And you can visit them any time. Elaina Koblatz says the Tau is the future. She is wrong. The Noomans are the future... the next evolutionary step for humankind.

20 June 2146
ANCHOR: While scientists and philosophers argue about the nature of the Noomans, and the significance of how dead people can appear in the VR Net, the world's politicians have managed to agree on a locale to discuss the Oceanus Question. It's the Amundsen Base at the South Pole. The domed city that served as a test site for the technologies that were developed for Habitat Mars will now host the intercombine summit. Israeli Prime Minister Kanter was delighted.

KANTER: This is an important first step. And Israel reiterates its offer to share completely all technologies associated with the Shar-Ar Project with all involved parties when a peaceful solution to this conflict is reached.

21 June 2146
ANCHOR: Mass murder in Tel Aviv! Yussl Jacobs used a portable drilling laser to kill his wife and three children as they ate breakfast this morning, then he ran screaming through his suburban neighbourhood slaughtering everyone he encountered. Initial count puts the death toll at 13, including Mr. Jacobs who turned the laser on himself when cornered by Israeli police. Yussl Jacobs is reportedly a top Israeli particle engineer who has worked on the Shah-Ar Project since its inception. A quote from a survivor: "He was such a gentle man. This is completely out of character." No word yet on how this tragedy will effect the progress of the faster-than-light project. FTL will provide further details as they become available.

24 June 2146
ANCHOR: The date for the historic Peace Conference in Antarctica has been set. On July 1, the world's Combine leaders begin meeting at the Amundsen Research and Conference Center to discuss the fate, and future, of Jefferson Kirwan's Oceanus. Kirwan wants nothing less than full independence for his underwater followers while the EC's Georges Favreau remains completely opposed to Oceanus. And in preparation for this historic conference, FTL brings you updates on... Antarctica Today. Once one of the loneliest and forbidding places on the planet, now coastal Antarctica is a snowy vacationland for the super-wealthy. Visiting dignitaries will be able to enjoy the mammoth sports complex built for the 2140 Winter Olympics. Thanks to MacroWeather's orbital mirrors, Antarctica gets more fresh powder snow than any other place in the world...

25 June 2146
ANCHOR: The countdown continues for the Nautilus as it speeds toward Earth and home. The troubled Operation Reach Out crew are only three weeks away from landing. Recently, Kristeen Ballard spoke to the crew as they entered Martian Nearspace. BALLARD: Actually, I spoke to Elaina Koblatz. Captain Mike and Dr. Karawara were checking re-entry systems.

ANCHOR: Did you ask her about her experience on Europa?

BALLARD: No. All Elaina wanted to know was... if Tauism had reached Mars. I told her that I didn't think so. I mean I haven't seen any workers wearing arm bands or saying those strange words--

ANCHOR: Tau-plamt?

BALLARD: Right. Tauism hasn't come here yet. And I, for one, am glad.

26 June 2146
ANCHOR: Disaster over the North Atlantic! A floater transport exploded just before dawn. No survivors have been found and, so far, there is no explanation for the mysterious destruction of the transport. FTL has learned that the floater was of Italian registry, out of Catania, Italy... registered to none other than Armondo Corleone. We went to Armondo for a reaction.

CORLEONE: Hey, what is this? Aren't the skies safe for businessmen anymore?

ANCHOR: Armondo, you don't think it was an accident?

CORLEONE: No way. When's the last time you heard of a floater exploding? What do you think it was, the Hindenburg? No, this was sabotage. I'll find out who did it and they better watch their backs.

ANCHOR: What was in the transport?

ARMONDO: That's the strange thing. All it carried was my Fall line of Tau-wear, all with that wacky logo. I tell you, I smell a plot.

27 June 2146
ANCHOR: Today, dignitaries from every corner of the globe arrived at the frozen continent of Antarctica, ready to begin the tense peace process. Madeleine Clarke arrived first, even sneaking in a few ski runs on Mt. Erebus before the first official dinner tonight. The gill man himself was last, arriving via his sub at McMurdo Base. The world's leaders come to a frozen continent steeped in legends of bravery and exploration. For more than two centuries Antarctica beckoned explorers like Roald Amundsen and Robert Falcon Scott to race toward the South Pole. Scott's doomed Terra Nova expedition perished a mere 10 kilometres from food and fuel. Visitors can still visit the 250-year-old camp used by Scott's heroic team.

28 June 2146
ANCHOR: Another mass murder in Fortress Israel. Weeks ago, a technician with the Shar-Ar project went berserk and embarked on a shooting spree. Last night, Emil Sturman, an engineer, came home, removed a pulse weapon from his bedroom, and started randomly shooting people in his complex. Armoured Police in New Jerusalem surrounded Sturman's apartment. But Sturman took his own life before he could be arrested. Prime Minister Yakov Kantner immediately imposed a total news blackout on the investigation of this latest mass murder. The Association of Very Concerned Scientists has issued a statement demanding to know if these incidents have anything to do with the mysterious Shar-Ar project itself. But with a news blackout in Fortress Israel, no answer is expected.