Far Frontiers Gateway sector

085-2508 Gateway News Service- Gateway

Gateway Shipyards announced that the 100 ton Scout/Courier was getting a "facelift" with the latest TL 12 electronics, computers, and drive systems. Also the air purification system was finally going to be updated to remove the tendency for it to develop an "interesting" smell over several weeks of operations. The source of the issue seems to have been the General Products designed environmental system, with the new system being sourced from the Gateway Corporation Environmental and Ships Systems division. The new unit has a good reputation for purification of the air and water on the ship, and its resistance to developing what some have taken to calling "a real whang in the air, that sort of sticks with you after a while".

The new unit has been designed for easy retrofitting into existing installations, so that currently in service 100 ton Scout/Couriers can with a one week stay in the spacedock get their enviro-systems completely replaced. The General Products system was installed due to a sweetheart deal made with bureaucrats who have since been sacked or prosecuted for getting "kickbacks" from the now defunct General Products.

087-2508 Gateway News Service- New Canberra

Diana Thevins-Wong has revealed the new menu item for the Wombat Burger chain of stores; the Aslan Special. A double meat burger, extra rare, bacon, not crisp, pickles, lettuce, and brown mustard. The Aslan Special will be available at all Wombat Burger locations by the end of the year. Also the chain is looking into adding several other Aslan specific meal items to their menu, since they are betting on an increase in the number of Aslans entering human space.

Ms. Thevins-Wong is always on the look out for new taste sensations for the chain which she has run for over two decades now. She has found what is being called a Purple Beet-Tater in English since no one can pronounce the Aslan name for it. The Aslans apparently like it boiled them fried in rendered animal fat. Humans who have tried it, have not shown a great deal of fondness for this plant. Aslans, however, enjoy it with their burgers. Also they have shown an increasing fondness for Wombat Tartare, which is on the "Secret Menu" at all participating Wombat Burger stores.

081-2508 Gateway News Service- Dusk

The Golden Goose has reappeared in the system, on the same trajectory that it had vanished from, just slightly off course. As the system defense craft matched trajectory and speed, Marines conducted a boarding action. The crew was present, and seemed shocked at the apparent hostile response by the marines and the navy which had threatened to blow the ship to atoms if it did not follow orders exactly.

As the ship was allowed to approach Quarantine Station #1, the crew was moved over to isolation areas, and then interviewed by Military police, intelligence specialists and quarantine officers.

A consistent story revealed itself, the crew had no idea that three days had passed, and were shocked at being told that they had vanished. Sensor logs on the ship did not show anything out of the ordinary, no anomalous readings, no sign that the ship had vanished, just...nothing. The logs show that the ship was on trajectory, and then suddenly was two kilometers off its original flight path with no explanation of why this occurred, and no gap in the sensor logs.

The crew was also subjected to chemical interrogation, along with other techniques, and once more their stories were absolutely consistent. The crew has absolutely no memory of the missing days, and is rather upset that they were being called liars. When shown proof of their disappearance, the crew was shocked, and several accused the interrogators of lying to them, until shown the ships logs.

The crew was in perfect health, all the cargo was present, and there was no sign that anything out of the ordinary had occurred, except for the missing time. As one naval officer put it to GNS: "Well, just another day in the weirdest system in the galaxy". After hours of interrogation, the crew was allowed back on their ship, where the cargo was unloaded, and the Golden Goose headed out, escorted by three warships.

A spokesman for the system commander told us at GNS that they had no explanation for this event, and could not even begin to speculate, just being happy that the ship, crew, and cargo were safe. The crews were really looking forward to the Freedonia Vittles Chicken Pot Pies, a

099-2508 Gateway News Service- New Paris

A police alert has been put out, because of rumors that the arch criminal Biddle is allegedly on planet. When pressed for more information, the Spokesman for the New Paris Gendarmarie would only say: Il est là le petit s****d de rats, je le sens dans mes os !("He's here the little rat b*****d, I can feel it in my bones!") A sketch of a possible person who was claimed to be Biddle was distributed, and a person identified as Rogier Le Mot was taken into custody by zealous Gendarmes. He was taken to the New Paris central station where he was interrogated for several hours before the police discovered they had made a mistake, much to their horror.

However, it was proven that Messr. Le Mot was at baker in the village of DuChamps and has been a resident there for over 50 years, running the towns bakery. He was released, and the police had to recall the wanted poster to avoid being sued by Messr. Le Mot. Le Monde had the following headline: Pour tenter de prouver leur compétence, la Police prend la baguette et s'embarrasse... encore une fois. (In an attempt to prove their competence, the Police get the baguette and embarrass themselves...again.)

The Chief of the local Gendarmes was forced to issue a grovelling apology to Mr. Le Mot, and agreed that the local Gendarmes would only purchase bread from his store. Mr. Le Mot said to Le Monde: Pu**in de m**e ! On pourrait penser que ces inspecteurs Clouseau à bas prix sauraient mieux faire ! Mais qu’attendez-vous des pieds plats ? (Holy s**t! You would think that these cut rate Inspector Clouseau's would know better! But what do you expect from the flatfoots?) He then said that he would forgive them since they are just stupid, but it had better not happen again!

After a complete investigation, Police spokesmen have retracted their assertion that Biddle is on New Paris, they think that a mistake was made by an over zealous inspector in the anti-terror group.


(In New Parisian slang "Getting the baguette" is rather rude and used in the wrong place could result in getting some involuntary dental work.)

101-2508 Gateway News Service- Rama

The Rama Racing Commission has issued some new rulings in light of the previous races cheating scandal involving Professor Fate. Also they are going to make the race more interesting and challenging since the racers have, in the opinion of the Commission, gotten "too comfortable" with the route. So in this upcoming Rama World Race, the course will be mapped using actual paper maps and an old style GPS/GLONASS system. No Nav Sat fixes, no inertial nav computers.

Also the course of the race is being changed, to go north up around one of the local seas, taking the racers into the tundra of the wild north. As a result all race vehicles will be required to have extra emergency equipment to include firearms. After hitting all of the checkpoints which will be the standard 500 kilometers apart, each team will be required to have an emergency locator beacon attached to the vehicle in a crash proof housing, and 48 hours of power.

This year they will also limit the vehicle substitutions to three maximum in case the starting vehicle is wrecked or suffers such a malfunction that it cannot continue. Also each vehicle will be completely searched before start, and sealed with security tape until such time as the race will actually start. A check for grav modules will be completed, and if any team is caught with grav modules, they will be disqualified immediately, and suffer a three race penalty.

The change to the route will ad approximately 3,200 extra kilometers to the race, and will take the racers through some hitherto unseen terrain. Also Abishek's Dhaba, and Bruce's Bilibong will remain as checkpoints for the race since they have been big sponsors each year. There will be less desert terrain, and more downs and badlands this year. Several potential contestants have filed official protests over the route change, but the Board has upheld the new route. The Coffeeville team is reported to have been very pleased with the change since badland racing is their strong suit. The Freedonian team told the others to quit complaining, and get ready to get stomped.

This years race will kick off on 180 day. Already bookies are taking bets with the odds on the various teams fluctuating almost daily. In light of the new route, the favorite team from Friedland has slipped in the odds, since they are not near arctic and badlands racers. But at this point it is anyone's race.

There are some complaints that the new route has given the teams too short a time span to modify their equipment which is set up for the equatorial route that has been run for the last 50 years. This new route will require travel over multiple climate zones, and is considered much more strenuous and hazardous. The predominate vehicle the New Texas Roughrider IX chassis has formed the basis for the last five winning teams vehicles. A team from New Texas Motors has arrived on Rama to evaluate the new route.

102-2508 Gateway News Service- Gas Tank

The New Texas Rangers along with the System Security Unit has made a dozen arrests in the murder case involving Orbit Station #1 and the explosion in the tankage. It appears that New Texas Orbital Construction was the victim of a campaign of both industrial sabotage, and murder.

The local president for Orbital Mechanics Inc., his executive assistant, director of security, and nine others who were employed by Orbital Mechanics were arrested on warrants issued by the 241st District Court. The warrants were for criminal mischief over 100,000 dollars value, Capital murder, criminal conspiracy, illegal data breach, and a number of other charges. The murder charge carries the death penalty or life without the possibility of parole.

New Texas Ranger Lieutenant Lance Wulfe has said that they had two cooperating invdiduals who came forward with evidence of this conspiracy to cause New Texas Orbital Construction to lose its bid. A further warrant was issued for the system director of Galaxy Metals Ms. Li Bing Bao for criminal conspiracy, and several charges which are being held under seal at this time. Ms. Li has fled the system, having left the day before.

We are being told that Orbital Mechanics Inc, and Galaxy Metals had entered into an agreement once New Texas Orbital Construction was out of the picture, they would "divide up" the system for their own profit. The Rangers and System Security had raided the corporate offices of the two companies, but the system at Galaxy Metals had been wiped before Rangers could get to the control system. An attempt to do the same at Orbital Mechanics failed because the sys-op failed to activate the wipe command properly.

All of the arrested parties are being taken to New Texas for actual trial since the facilities at the station in the Gas Tank System are not equipped to handle anything of this sort, being more of a "small claims" and customs court