Originally Published: 09 November 2022
01 October 1461
I received a notice on my comm tab that Mending Worlds had relieved me of my contract position.
So much for that.
They gave me a high performance score, and instructed me to turn in the unstable talisman in its Viridin Box, of which they new through the daily reports I was required to submit. And they informed me that payment would come as soon as this is done.
I took a gyroplane back to Jestopole where I met with my Lead Scholar, Martin Clame. I told him about the message, but also that I had reported the talisman to the federal government as evidence not bound to the property of Mending Worlds and declared the investigation to be independent of the company. I did this immediately after I returned from the Endwoods, because, after all, I had my suspicions for the company.
I wonder if that may have the reason for my dismissal.
No matter. As I informed Clame, I arranged with Jon Boff and the local Kingston authorities this morning to pay me a stipend. Nevertheless, Clame voiced his doubts, cautioning me on the dangers of my initiative and suggesting that I follow through and hand over the talisman to either the federal government or Mending Worlds. But I refused. I have a legal right to the talisman as an independent investigator, pending federal government approval.
Clame was convinced. He cautioned me to be careful, suggesting that the business around the talisman is shady. But nevertheless, he marked my assignment as legitimate.
So my next agenda, at this point, is to find the so-called Marlin School and compare their talismans to my specimen. I will do this with my camera-glasses, an object appearing to be glasses but actually capture images with discreet commands. I will go in, appearing to window-shop and blink to take numerous pictures. These images will be uploaded to my comm tab, which has a program to blow the images into three-dimensional models, a very useful tool for comparison.
The Balloon Festival has ended, and gone are all traces of the exhibits there. So I had to conduct a global inquiry through my comm tab to find any hint of "Marlin School." It took a bit of extensive searching, but I did find a lead.
The "Marlin School" was actually simply an exhibit name at the Balloon Festival. Its parent company is called Cere Professional, which operates only one permanent location, which happens to be in the Docks District of the city of South Masonia.
Why would they set up shop all the way in King's End under a different name? Also, I would like to see if they are certified under the CSSC.