1100 – 005 – Regina Starport
1830 – 1900 Burdened with candy, flowers, and unsolicited advice from his well-meaning friends and colleagues, and dressed in his service dress blues, Froge picks up Arbellatra for their dinner date at her apartment in a tasteful, modern building in a nice neighborhood just outside the starport. She wears something elegant, flowing, and a little bohemian. They amble through the streets of Regina together until they come to one of Arbellatra's favorite restaurants and their dinner destination- "De Melkwegg - Old Terran Cuisine."
1900 – 1915 - Seated at their table, Arbellatra notices Teo, the former night manager of the Travellers' Aid Society dining with someone Arbellatra doesn't know. (Froge met Teo the night Grigor Phelleps was being kidnapped.) Arbellatra uses her comm to surreptitiously take a photo of Teo and his associate having dinner under the guise of taking a picture of Froge; she subsequently comms it to Froge, who sends it on to the Partners. Froge recognizes the eyes of the man Teo is having dinner with, and suspects it is "Mr. Jones." Arbellatra and Froge's worst suspicions are confirmed when Teo silently mouthes "help!" to them, as his dinner companion abruptly leaves their table, dragging Teo with him. Froge and Arbellatra follow. In the meantime, Leah has contacted Madeline about this development, and Madeline has in turn contacted Garrivan del'Zed.
1915 – 1924 - Emerging from the restaurant, Froge and Arbellatra first lose, and then find, their quarry. Mr. Jones has dragged Teo in a deserted side street and is clearly trying to eliminate him. Arbellatra and Froge confront Mr. Jones, who shoots at them, allowing Teo to break free and run. Mr. Jones sprints off as well, and Froge and Arbellatra give chase. Meanwhile, the Partners are all converging, from various locations and distances, on Froge and Arbellatra, to render support.
1925 – 1929 - Fleeing his pursuers, Mr. Jones runs into a particularly dark cul-de-sac of an alley off a main thoroughfare. Based on their reading of the local maps via their comms, Froge and Arbellatra think they have him cornered. Suddenly, they hear a shot. Unknown to them, Mr. Jones has shot his way into the basement of one of the buildings off of the alley. Froge tries to talk to Mr. Jones and gets no response. Carried away with excitement, Arbellatra turns the illumination on her comm up to full, holds it over her head, and whooping and hollering, runs into the alleyway. She finds it deserted, and a basement door yawning open. Not unkindly, Froge urges her to not to get unnecessarily killed.
1930 – 1934 - Pascal is first on the scene. He and Froge hurl a trashcan into the yawning basement door, trying to flush out Mr. Jones and draw fire; nothing happens. They then enter and begin to explore the basement, finding it full of little storage areas for the apartments above, and largely deserted.
1935 - Martaan and Leah are next on the scene. Leah joins the Arbellatra, Froge, and Pascal in the alley. Martaan decides to try the front door of the shop on first floor; he surprises Mr. Jones trying to leave through this door; he shoots Martaan at point-blank. However, the low muzzle velocity from his silenced body-pistol, coupled with his poor marksmanship and Martaan's combat environment suit, result in the bullet glancing off, bruising Martaan's ribs. Mr. Jones utters, "I don't believe it!" He and Martaan struggle, and Martaan grapples him and knocks him unconscious.
1936 – 2400 - Much to his chagrin, Arbellatra takes a photo of Mr. Jones in the custody of the Partners, and declares "Best date ever!" Almost immediately, Jelph swings by in a prisoner transport borrowed from the Imperial Navy. He has managed to retrieve a shaken Teo, who is horrified that he was unknowingly aiding an enemy of the Imperium. Mr. Jones is loaded into the transport, and Pascal, Leah, and Martaan accompany Jelph back to the Imperial Naval facility, to debrief Teo and process Mr. Jones, who turns out to be a Zhodani spy operating under non-official cover, and therefore exempt from diplomatic immunity. The Partners end their evening on the roof of one of the Naval buildings, sharing a rare cigar with the Imperial Intelligence Service's Chief of Station for Regina.
Garrivan del'Zed charitably decides that Froge and Arbellatra will have ample time to fill out paperwork and be debriefed, and that they should continue their interrupted date. They wander around Regina enjoying each other's company, discussing Arbellatra's family and their ambitions for her, and Froge's life in the Navy. Over the course of their ramblings, they each confide to each other that they will genuinely miss each other when Froge has to leave for the VES. Ultimately, they find themselves back at Arbellatra's apartment, around midnight. Arbellatra invites Froge into her bedroom, hangs his naval sash on her bedroom's doorknob, and closes the door behind them.