City of 4,000 Spies
a continuing series of audio stories
Appaloosa Radio offers the City of 4000 Spies science fiction series featuring Noble Son Dusko Rarrko, the director of undercover clandestine information gathering activities and espionage for the tiny (but extremely resource rich) Dominion of Sassko.
The Dominion or Sassko is frequently pitted against the two principal powers, the militaristic Empire Sha Yot and the venerable Kingdom of Gje To maintain its independence, Sassko remains avowedly neutral, while actively gathering information and covertly acting on its own national interests.
Much of the action in this series occurs in the non-aligned resort city of Lell, just a few sectors from the Dominion of Sassko.
Lell, where every recreational opportunity, drug, potion, or experience is just a click away, efficiently delivered to your luxury suite and (of course) charged directly to your account.
On the tour boats, the guides tell of the Lake of Many Colors, where a 100 million fragments merge and re-merge into billions and billions of patterns. One can spend multiple lifetimes watching its fantastic, ever-swirling waves and never (not even once) see a representation repeated.
But to those in the know, Lell is a very different kind of place.
“Believe me, no one comes to Lell to watch the Lake. No, Lell is an international city where guests from a million different sectors are fully welcomed (as long as their cash holds out). It is where one comes to mine the most precious mineral of all, the mineral of information. They say that the resort city of Lell has over 4,000 spies. That’s not counting the taxi drivers, the hotel staff, the Farqat dealers in the casino, the Unie barkeepers, the Antonine fortune-tellers, and the ever-present Koopsie girls, any one of whom will gladly gather whatever information that is requested, for a sizable tip.”
“Lell is where information is acquired, bartered, stolen, resold, confirmed, and falsified. Rumors, rumors about rumors, and the possibility of even more rumors fill the luxury suites with spies of every shape, size, language family, and quadrant of origin.”
Enjoy the City of 4000 Spies series of audio stories!
Stories from the continuing series
~ Listen to Audio Story ~
Information is Expensive
There was a reason why Noble Son Dusko Rarrko wished to travel to Lell without informing the PNB7Q. Intuition told the PNB7Q that this was not a need for recreation, down time, as Rarrko had called it. It was a trip where Rarrko wished to travel incognito. Not hidden from others, but, rather, hidden from the PNB7Q themselves.
Remember, the PNB7Q was a set of separate data devices organized into a single, systematic vehicle for sharing necessary information among agents and designated decision-makers in real time. Sharing was the operational word. Anyone with the appropriate access would be able to query the PNB7Q and learn both where Rarrko was going and what his purpose was for going there.
The PNB7Q not only created opportunities for quickly sharing information, but also the necessarysupports for collaborative activities. With the assistance of the PNB7Q, Sassko’s agents and its decision makers could act as one organic whole. Sharing pertinent, real-time information, and becoming, as a result, unified for decisive collaborative action.
However, on this occasion, Noble Son Dusko Rarrko was deliberately withholding pertinent information from the PNB7Q.
There was information about this trip to Lell that he did not want shared with others.
The unsaid was more important than the explicit.
~ Listen to Audio Story ~
Trip Home
Appaloosa Radio offers The Trip Home, a story from the continuing City of 4000 Spies series.
~~~
This time Noble Son Dusko Rarrko is in the very distant Ganna 40 Sector on a very hush-hush assignment of an unspecified nature He is working for a sponsoring entity that carries out actions of an indeterminate kind.
Then, he receives a secret message from PNB7Q. “Return home immediately on first available transport.”
Unfortunately, the only available transport is a very slow cargo klunker, designed for carrying extremely heavy loads to and from the mines. It carries passengers only as a necessary courtesy. Sixteen seats. No food. No drink. No entertainment.
Rarrko must spend the next 96 earth revolutions trapped in a 20-meter by 20-meter, very bare-bones passenger comparment with fifteen strangers, bound together by their boredom and monotony.
It turns out to be, as he says later, “a most eventful trip.”
This audio story also pays partial homage to the 1954 film, The High and The Mighty, probably one of the finest “air disaster” films to come from Hollywood.
Appaloosa Radio offers I am JooN-ie , an audio story from the continuing City of 4000 Spies series.
~~~
Rona:
“Cadet Squad Leader Rona EN Beelzie reporting as requested, Sir.”
Commander:
“You may stand at ease Cadet Squad Leader.
“I have been reviewing the performance of this epoch’s graduating class. I am pleased to share that Squad CVZ-678 had the overall highest marks, and most importantly, the highest rate of graduation success of any cadet squad.
“Congratulations on your excellent leadership.”
Rona:
“Thank you, Sir. We have worked extremely hard to perform at the level that the Empire Sha Yot expects for its military officers.”
Commander:
“Based on your outstanding performance at the Military Tactics College, I believe you will prove to be an excellent officer for the Empire Sha Yot
Rona:
“Thank you, sir. Your commendation means a great deal to me.”
Commander:
“I see that your specialization is intelligence.
“Cadet, you are about to receive your very first military assignment. It is an assignment that is of utmost importance to the Empire. It is an assignment against our most hated enemy, the Kingdom Gje.”
“However, because of some pathetic treaties that some traitors to the Empire foolishly signed, we cannot deal with our hated enemy by direct military action. We must address the matter through clandestine action.
“Do you understand my intent, Cadet?
Rona:
“Yes, Sir I do. My loyalty to the Empire’s new leader is absolute. I will do all that is within my power to fulfill our national ambitions, to destroy our hated enemy, to restore the fallen honor of the Empire Sha Yot.
“I am ready for this assignment.”
Commander:
“Good. Now, Junior Intelligence Officer Rona EN Beelzie, you are due a vacation, a celebration for your hard work, an extended party, two weeks of pure fun, in the beautiful resort city of Lell.”
~ Listen to Audio Story ~
I am JooN-ie
Appaloosa Radio offers The Beast , an original audio story from the continuing City of 4000 Spies series.
~~~
Dusko Rarrko, the second son of the Nineteenth Great Nobleman of Sassko, was probably Lell’s most recognizable spy. He was handsome, athletic, and ingenious. He wore flashy high-end fashion and drove a speeder that broke 1.75. He was seldom seen without a bevy of beautiful females and was often described with that old-fashioned word “playboy” (although no one seemed to know what it meant).
He looked the part of a spy. He moved in the nuanced way that spies moved.
If you asked him, “what is your occupation?”, he would smugly smile and say, “I am a spy, of course.” If you would follow up with another question, “who are you spying for?” he would again smirk, “Who ever pays me the most.”
However, he was already wealthy beyond imagination.”
Recently, his routine changed. Now, every morning, he rose early,and took the pleasure boat out to the small Island in the remarkable Lake of The Many Colors. He brought with him a sack lunch and a hat to protect him from the intense solar radiation of the Blue Sun.
During the quadracycle of the Blue Sun, most residents of Lell stayed indoors fearing the epidermal effects of the solar radiation. Dosko Rarrko had the extremely fair purple skin so typical of the people of Sassko. It would have been prudent for him to stay indoors. Venturing out posed a danger to him.
Yet, every morning he took the pleasure boat to the island and paid his admission to the now decrepitate zoological garden.
There, he would sit on a particular bench for an hour or so, slowly eating the contents of his sack lunch.
After finishing his sack lunch, he would take the boat back to his hotel and continue with his regular daily activities.
In a posh city where you can get any pleasure, recreational opportunity, drug, potion, or experience, Dusko Rarrko, the admitted spy, had selected one of the very most sedate of the City’s many recreational opportunities.
~ Listen to Audio Story ~
The Beast
~ Listen to Audio Story ~
The Mineral of Information
Appaloosa Radio offers The Mineral of Information , an audio story from the continuing City of 4000 Spies series.
~~~
PNB7Q:
“Noble Son, Dosko Rarrko, how shall I prepare you for your mission?”
Rarrko:
“This mission is different, PNB7Q. I will not be going to Lell to gather information. No, the purpose of this trip is for me to be robbed and then (in the course of the robbery) be murdered.”
PNB7Q:
“Noble Son. I do not know how to prepare you to be robbed and murdered.”
Rarrko:
“By this murder, certain information will get to certain individuals. False information (if you will).”
PNB7Q:
“Noble Son. This mission seems to involve considerable danger. I cannot participate in a mission that will result in your death.”
Rarrko:
“Of course, PNB7Q, the plan is for the character that I am playing to be murdered. I plan to escape death and be ready for additional escapades.”
PNB7Q:
“If I understand your request, you wish to be transformed into someone else, who, while in Lell will be robbed and murdered. Yet, the real you will not die, but only appear to die.”
Rarrko:
“Yes, but the death must appear genuine. It will not work for me to pretend to die. It must be real.”
PNB7Q:
“So, the death is real, but you must recover, and you must recover as your own self. Noble Son. You present a most interesting challenge.”
Rarrko:
“And, also, while I am in character, I cannot remember who I really am or what the genuine purposes of the mission are. My mind must be cleaned.”
PNB7Q:
“Of course, that is entirely do-able. It is the recovery that I worry about. How to recover a previous mind from one that has been cleansed. There have been issues.”
Rarrko:
“Well, that is the plan. It involves considerable danger. Much could go wrong. Much could go wrong very quickly.”
PNB7Q:
“I agree completely.”
~~~
~ Listen to the Multi-part Audio Story ~
Big Chief -- Part 1
Big Chief -- Part 2
Big Chief -- Part 3
Big Chief -- Part 4
Big Chief -- Part 5
Big Chief -- Part 6
Big Chief -- Part 7
Big Chief -- Part 8
Big Chief -- Part 9 - Conclusion
Appaloosa Radio offers an original multi-part audio story, BIG CHIEF, from the continuing City of 4000 Spies series.
~~~
In addition to his very public royal duties, Dusko Rarrko, the second son of the Great Nobleman, operated his nation’s undercover information-gathering activities, its chief spy, as it were.
After the gala dinner celebration honoring the newly arrived Ambassador from the Gela-im Sector, he sat in his private lounge holding a message.
It appeared to be a routine message that had been transmitted through the usual clandestine channels. It was from one of his most trusted agents. A very beautiful woman that he had recruited, trained, and placed in a key position. She was a woman that Rarrko had great affection for, one that he had made love to many times. Her network was one of the most productive that he had ever built. She learned things other agents could not. Intelligent. Resourceful. Very skilled. Very trusted.
Rarrko read the message again.
“To the Director of Special Operations (DSO). Most urgent. Usual manner of liaison with Big Chief under severe surveillance. Believe code marking device in adversary hands. Give directive how to re-establish direct contact with Big Chief. Urgent. Need assistance. Romaine.”
Rarrko knew from the content of the message that his agent was now under the control of an adversary. The phrase “Big Chief” is one that no one in Rarrko’s networks would use. No, they would use a number that PNB7Q would randomly generate for each message transmission. No one was ever named. Never.
And, the message ended with the agent’s real birth name. Romaine Wi Jaa Cert. She would never expose her real name in a clandestine message. Never.
Rarrko knew what had to be done., as much as he disliked doing it. The agent and her entire network must be eliminated. Sanctioned is the word used. Sanctioned before more damage can occur. Sanctioned before the adversary could gain advantage.
But where was she? And who, among Sassko’s many adversaries had her?
~ Listen to the Audio Story ~
Posited Murder
Appaloosa Radio offers Posited Murder, an audio story from the continuing City of 4000 Spies series.
~~~
Rarrko: “Thank you PNB7Q for locating these for me. I have wanted to resolve the matter for some time.”
PNB7Q: “The documents that you had sought were difficult to find. They had been hidden in a bunker in a long-abandoned military base. It took some bribery and duplicity to obtain them.
[long pause] I notice that they are from a war that has been over for nearly forty-five quants.”
Rarrko: “Yes from a war that almost everyone has forgotten. A small war of insignificance. A mere ruffling of the feathers of the major powers. Less than ten thousand dead. Compared to the hundreds of millions in subsequent years, it was a small event indeed.”
PNB7Q: “I also noticed the seal of the Kingdom Gje.”
Rarrko: “Well technically speaking, it really was not an affair of the Kingdom Gje. It was an enterprise coordinated by one of the many sub-contractors that they Kingdom used, an enterprise designed to allow the Kingdom total deniability.”
PNB7Q: “I know the pattern. The Empire Sha Yot uses its own agents, never trusting anyone else. On the other hand, the Kingdom Gje, according to their pronouncements, had no clandestine agents. They were never involved. Always had complete deniability.”
Rarrko: “Yes. That’s the pattern. That’s what happened in this small affair.”
PNB7Q: “Why do you have such a keen interest in an affair that is of so little consequence.”
Rarrko: “Because I murdered a man. A man whose murder I was never certain was justified.”
PNB7Q: “You were, I presume, under orders. The justification was not yours to make.”
Rarrko: “The decision was mine. I was told it was justified. A beautiful woman told me. I believed her.”
PNB7Q: “But you no longer believe her.”
Rarrko: “I have my doubts. I had them moments after I strangled the man with a window covering.”
~~~
~ Listen to the Audio Story ~
Sauced!
“Luscious Lell by the ever-lovely Lake . . . . Satisfying your every pleasure is our only business.”
“Within the world of espionage, they often call it a “honeytrap.” A sweet opportunity to trap an individual, to compromise them, to procure information, to elicit on-going cooperation. The enticements often include sex, drugs, special status, and money. Once an individual falls into the honeytrap, they are particularly vulnerable to blackmail, extortion, and exploitation.
In the posh international, resort city of Lell, which hosts guests from a million different sectors, there were many such “honeytraps.” However, there was one of singular brilliance, one that featured opulence beyond imagination, one with its own unique crystalline pavilion displaying unparalleled views of the magnificent Lake of Many Colors. Where only individuals of the greatest significance were personally invited. The Événement de la soirée — hosted by the Noblewoman, Bronwynne de Soluxe, the cousin of Noble Son Dusko Rarrko, the Second Son of the 19th Great Nobleman of Sassko.
Like the other “honeytraps,” Noblewoman Bronwynne staffed her pavilion with Koopsie girls, artificial creations of exquisite beauty, whose sole purpose was to bring pleasure. But, unlike many of the others, she also added Koopsie boys (for those who were so inclined).
~~~
Narrator:
“Guests are arriving for an evening of pleasure at the Crystalline Pavilion, operated by the Noble Lady Bronwynne of Sassko. Her Principal Mozhino, Ariana Jo Lynn, warmly greets the invited guests as they arrive.”
Principal Mozhno:
“Noble Lady, Bronwynne. We have just been joined by a high-ranking military official from the Empire Sha Yot.”
Noblewoman:
“Show me on the monitors. Yes. He is from the Emperor’s Supreme Military Council. I do not recognize the rank. PNB7Q please identify this individual.”
PNB7Q:
“That is Supreme Vice Commander for Infantry Operations, Jozan Bat Betulzum. He is the third highest ranking member of the Emperor’s Supreme Military Council.”
Noblewoman:
“Do we have any intelligence data on him?”
PNB7Q:
“Negative. We only know what is publicly available. No personal data is obtainable.”
Noblewoman:
“Then, why has he come here. Surely his intelligence professionals have warned him about what kind of operation our pavilion is.”
Principal Mozhno:
“Noble Lady, we have an answer to your query. He has gone down to the arena where he has placed a large wager on one of the mortal-battle bouts.”
Noblewoman:
“So, he appears to be a gambler. I am herewith ordering all agents to stay away from the Supreme Vice Commander. Do no approach. Do not elicit contact. Stay back. We will watch.”
~~~
PNB7Q:
“Noble Son. I am sorry to awaken you. But I have terrible news.”
Rarrko:
“I am now fully awake. Please continue.”
PNB7Q:
“The Empire Sha Yot has issued an evocation of war against Sassko.”
Rarrko:
“What? How could that be?”
PNB7Q:
“It is in response to the murder of Supreme Vice Commander for Infantry Operations, Jozan Bat Betulzum.”
Rarrko:
“To my knowledge, we have never had any contact with him. He is one of the old guard warriors who disavows all contact with foreigners.”
PNB7Q:
“Nevertheless, he was murdered in the Crystalline Pavilion that Noble Lady Bronwynne operates.”
Rarrko:
“PNB7Q, this is most puzzling. I spoke with Bronwynne earlier this evening, and everything was nominal. No mention of a high-ranking military officer from the Empire Sha Yot. Please contact my cousin.”
PNB7Q:
“Unfortunately, I cannot. She has been arrested by the local police.”
Rarrko:
“I need to get there as soon as possible. Please arrange emergency transportation, highest level clearance. And, awaken my father. Tell him that we are about to go to war.
PNB7Q:
“Unfortunately, he has already been informed by the Principal Ambassador from the Empire Sha Yot.”
~~~~~~
Special thanks to Michael Brandt, without whose invaluable assistance this audio story would not have been possible.
~ Listen to the Audio Story ~
Chiku Shan
A Most Decrepit Ferry and the Magic of Chiku Shan
An Original Story by Appaloosa Radio
From the continuing City of 4000 Spies Series
Representing his father, the Nineteenth Great Nobleman of Sassko, Noble Son Dusko Rarrko has been asked to re-tell the exciting adventure story of the escape of the Chiku Shan people from the tyranny of the brutal Nata-Vavra. The escape was aboard a decrepit ferry craft that was captained by a former smuggler, M N P Farfalla Cronbo-guuch, Falla’ as he was always called. The escape would not have been possible without the active intervention of the Ukimonogakari warrior monks and their special magic of silence.
A heroic escape from wicked oppression. An escape using an most unexpected means.
The speech highlights a day of celebration and remembrance for the Chiku Shan people of Ruch-858.
~~~
A fun and engaging story of escape from oppression and the magic of the earrior monks.
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