Bird Calls
Efaicicom - Parts 1 & 2
Emails from an Insurance Claims Investigation Company on Mars
Part 1
K —
The progress of Repot is worrying. I thought you said he wouldn’t be an issue? Attaching some files that were finally passed on to me by S. Last I heard, the investigation is still ongoing, but I fear he might find Passer! —A
— attachments —
Transmitted evidence for Claim 351.GHZ.13441, filed under type GHZ (“Loss of Life”): Written word of subject under investigation as reconstructed and annotated by claim investigator.
{What follows is a note written by the important and famous Mr. Thomas Hardin Passer, whom I have the (surprising) honor of investigating, following his most tragic disappearance via kidnapping, as claimed by Terra Inc. I’m transmitting the reconstruction and will submit the original upon my return. – H. M. Repot, Field Claims Investigator} {The heavy rains 2nd Mar. 25 – 2nd Apr. 2 along northern vegetation band seem to have soiled the note so that it requires reconstruction in spots, but lucky for you, whoever you are, I have managed so far to reconstruct all information in the field!}
Note 1 - found 2nd Apr. 10, 08:42:
{note on paper (letterhead “Terra”) found in tree hollow at 25.105729 N 56.012934 W, approximately 30km north-northwest of claimed kidnapping site. – H.R.}
“Help. [Kidnap]pe[d]. My name is Th[omas Pass]er. Running north 2nd Mar. 22.”
Return Transmission:
Please limit personal annotations. Proceed.
Transmitted evidence for Claim 351.GHZ.13441, filed under type GHZ (“Loss of Life”): Written word of subject under investigation as reconstructed and annotated by claim investigator.
{Usually, you guys talk more. – H.R.}
Note 2 – found 2nd Apr. 10, 10:22:
{note on paper (letterhead “Terra”) found in tree hollow 25.850122 N 56.101723 W – H.R.}
“[Help. Kidnapped. Tho]mas Passer. Third day running north [2nd Mar.] 24.”
Return Transmission:
Proceed.
Transmitted evidence for Claim 351.GHZ.13441, filed under type GHZ (“Loss of Life”): Written word of subject under investigation as reconstructed and annotated by claim investigator.
Note 3 – found 2nd Apr. 10, 11:20:
{note on paper (letterhead “Terra”) found in tree hollow 26.090598 N 56.110894 W – H.R.}
“Help. I have been kidnapped by s[ome sort of brute.] Does not seem to speak English. He [has be]en forcing me to [run] north the past four days. Leaving notes, plea[se follow. Please help.]”
{Oh a brute! Wonderfully dangerous. May I submit for a pay increase? Also, it’s very lonely out here. The vegetation is thinning and soon there won’t even be trees to keep me company. I would like to file for mental health compensation. - H.R.}
Return Transmission:
Contract unalterable. Please limit personal annotations. Proceed.
Transmitted evidence for Claim 351.GHZ.13441, filed under type GHZ (“Loss of Life”): Written word of subject under investigation as reconstructed and annotated by claim investigator.
{A long one! - H.R.}
Note 4 – found 2nd Apr. 10, 12:34:
{note on paper (letterhead “Terra”) found in porous boulder 30.113842 N 56.0512932. - H.R.}
“Help. Kidnapped. Thomas Passer. 7th day running north 2nd Apr. 3. We have not yet moved today, currently some fifty kilometers north of last note. Brute has disappeared for now. Awoke to the stick jabbing me in my eye - first time in the hand of the brute, my leader, who’s on the front end of this damned lead. Tried to rise but couldn’t. Cold from the night and nearly broken from part running part being dragged through the past eight days. Brute grunted and set me leaning against this stone. Something about the tone of this grunt tells me we’ve arrived somewhere. But around is nothing but red - more red than I have ever seen. The past two days have lost even the smallest patches of green. We must be some 200 km north the vegetation band at this point. Impassive, the brute gave me my usual morning morsel. Eternally impassive. He then sat with a tin and rag and uncapped the tin, dipped the rag, and polished the stick with some sort of lacquer. It reeked. Gagged on the ration. Then he walked north leaving me. Won’t dare running again. He still doesn’t care that I write and hasn’t noticed (or doesn’t care about) the notes I’ve been dropping behind. If he has noticed and can comprehend their significance (which I doubt), I fear for my life.”
{This is getting interesting! – H.R.}
Return Transmission:
Proceed.
Transmitted evidence for Claim 351.GHZ.13441, filed under type GHZ (“Loss of Life”): Annotation by claim investigator.
{2nd Apr. 11, 12:52 - Tracking efforts have proceeded on foot and have been greatly slowed, as the track is now changing direction unpredictably and sporadically. - H.R.}
Return Transmission:
Proceed.
Transmitted evidence for Claim 351.GHZ.13441, filed under type GHZ (“Loss of Life”): Written word of subject under investigation as reconstructed and annotated by claim investigator.
Note 5 – found 2nd Apr. 11, 07:22:
{charcoal on cavern entrance found 30.712623 N 55.985220 W – H.R.}
“Help.”
{Not a good sign. - H.R.}
Return Transmission:
Proceed.
Transmitted evidence for Claim 351.GHZ.13441, filed under type GHZ (“Loss of Life”): Written word of subject under investigation as reconstructed and annotated by claim investigator.
Note 6 - found 2nd Apr. 11, 07:23:
{charcoal on cavern wall found 30.712623 N 55.985220 W – H.R.}
“Help. Kidnapped. Thomas Passer. Walking approximately north 2nd Apr. 4. Please help. After last note, brute returned with stick and forced me to hold it. All yesterday paraded on lead and beaten if I didn’t keep the stick up and pointing ahead of me. Given no direction but if I turned south I was beaten. Can barely write. I don’t understand. We have stopped for the night in a cave and the brute has taken the last of my paper to start a small fire. I don’t know what he wants. He doesn’t acknowledge me when I speak. Please help.”
{Hmmmm… – H.R.}
Return Transmission:
Proceed.
A — Quit worrying, the man is a certified imbecile. Look at what he’s saying. S told me he spends every workday staring blankly at his monitor, taking extraordinary amounts of time for even the simplest task, and for every case he’s been assigned he was eventually told to return. He’s a nuisance, the worst possible person for the job. Passer is lost and we’ll get what’s coming to us. — K
K — He doesn’t seem so stupid! Look at this, just came in! I made S tell him to return. I had to. — A
— attachments —
Transmitted evidence for Claim 351.GHZ.13441, filed under type GHZ (“Loss of Life”): Observational log of claims investigator Hugo Marrin Repot in pursuit of claimed loss Thomas Hardin Passer.
Begin transcription:
Due to the uncourteous lack of notes left for me by Mr. Passer the past few days, I’ve decided to convey the progress of the investigation through convenient audio recording. I’ll leave it up to the transmitter to keep whoever you are updated. The lack of notes, barring explanation by the incapacitation of Mr. Passer, is likely due to the desolate nature of the surroundings. The random walk of his tracks began in and continue to wind through a flat red expanse! Honestly it’s quite beautiful. I don’t know why people don’t come out here more often. Well, it is a bit lonely. The tracks I’m following trend, on average, northward and every so often there is a hole about five or so centimeters in diameter. Or is it radius? I don’t remember. They’re about half a meter deep. I cannot resist passing on my hypothesis, what with the combined information of the stick, the holes and the random walk. Also, you must be dying to hear more about this. Here it is. I am a student of history, so bear in mind I know what I am talking about. People often don’t think I know what I’m talking about, but this time I do. Here it is. This so-called brute is forcing Passer to perform the archaic act of dowsing, that is, the act of somewhat feeling for water underground by wiggling a stick around and seeing where it goes. The brute’s apparent ignorance of English implies that Passer has been kidnapped by none other than one of the mythical groups that somehow live outside the vegetation band. Amazing. I’ve always fancied myself a bit of a cultural anthropologist and now I’m going to see a new culture. Must be, if they don’t know English here! It’s no surprise that a member of such a group would look for water sources. It’s quite dry out here. But why is Passer being forced to perform such a, what I’ll call, ritual? If the brute lives out here, how? Is he truly a part of a hidden culture? Proceeding on foot, must be only a few days behind.
Return Transmission:
Stop investigation. Return.
A — You’re right. Make sure he comes back. We need to get someone else on this. — K
K — For some reason he wants to stay. Trying to convince him. — A
— attachments —
Transmitted evidence for Claim 351.GHZ.13441, filed under type GHZ (“Loss of Life”): Observational log of claims investigator Hugo Marrin Repot in pursuit of claimed loss Thomas Hardin Passer.
Begin transcription:
Return? Are you kidding me? This is the first investigation of mine that’s actually interesting, and you want me to return? The tracks are fresher each day! I must be a couple days behind them! And you want me to return? At least give me a reason!
Return transmission:
New claim directive, return to office for rebrief.
K — He hasn’t responded after an hour. I’m getting worried. — A
K — He responded. S responded the only way she could, she’s getting nervous. What do I do? — A
— attachments —
Transmitted evidence for Claim 351.GHZ.13441, filed under type GHZ (“Loss of Life”): Observational log of former claims investigator Hugo Marrin Repot in pursuit of claimed loss Thomas Hardin Passer.
Begin transcription:
Fuck you and fuck this job. I’m not coming back. I quit. Passer needs help and I’m close. Real close. Even though he’s a disgusting excuse for a human. And these groups are mythical. If they’re real, I’m going to find out.
Return transmission:
Contract violation, contract terminated.
A — I’ll take care of him. Get S to destroy the last three records. We’ll have to start another claim soon. Wait for further notice. — K
Part 2
A — Any word from K?
Willow’s starting to breath down my neck to wrap up this case. They’re all fine thinking Passer and Repot died to a maniac and are pushing to submit the remaining evidence for minimal compensation on both, which is basically equivalent to telling the client to fuck off. Like I said, they didn’t even want this case to begin with. Just like everyone else.
Not sure how much longer I can keep us on the case. — S
S — Not yet. He hasn’t responded. — A
A – What should I do? What if he doesn’t respond? – S
A — Tracking Repot. Start a new claim: “loss of life” of Repot claimed by Willow Investigations, and set “George Fisher Mason” as the investigator. Make sure S is dispatch. Make something up about how Repot stopped responding to make Willow go for it. S should start getting transmissions. — K
K — You want S to convince Willow to investigate the loss of one of their most insignificant investigators? Are you insane? I doubt the guy is even insured! Also, who’s George Fisher Mason?
We can’t keep doing this to her without reason. — A
A — Hello?? — S
A — The money is reason enough! And just put the goddamn name down, stop asking so many questions! There’s a policy for Repot in the system now. Just tell her! — K
K — Wait, are you tracking Repot? — A
A — Yes. I will send S transmissions. I will preserve original evidence for Willow. I am following Repot until I see an opportunity. — K
K — Holy shit, okay. — A
S — Sorry, K responded. We need you to open an investigation on Repot for loss of life, claimed by Willow. I’ve already convinced Willow to go for it.
Set George Fisher Mason as the investigator. He’s real good - a freelance investigator I owe a favor. He’ll find Passer and we’ll get the evidence we need.
You’ll start getting evidence from him on Repot and Passer. — A