Fairhaven Chapter 4
Nonkiya
Read chapter 3 here
10.00 pm, Friday, November 13, 2026
Shinjuku, Tokyo – Nonkiya Bar
Global average temperature: 1.4°C above pre-industrial levels
After the seminar, four men descended to the little underground bar, a dark, old-fashioned place with a single employee standing behind a polished, wooden countertop. Bundles of chopsticks stood upright in shiny, black cups. Outside, the November air was already creating tiny clouds of vapour around the mouths of the pedestrians.
Strangers at the start of the evening, they each watched a well-advertised presentation about the melting of the arctic from the Cambridge Centre for Climate Repair. By the end of the talk, they were connected by their common response: a strong need for a strong drink, to shake off the inevitable sense of doom.
The speaker had droned, ‘As melting ice caps have darkened, replaced by open water, sunlight is no longer being reflected into space. What we have feared for decades is happening. We’ve tipped over into a positive feedback loop, meaning our ice caps will now melt faster and faster. Scarier still is the methane time bomb. Rising temperatures will cause this greenhouse gas, more than 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide, to be released from the permafrost and the shallow Siberian Seas, spiking global heating, and ending civilization as we know it.’
They bid him farewell with bows, handshakes, and goodwill. But their mood darkened the moment he was out of sight.
At the bar, they exchanged cards, ordered beers and chatted about the visiting professor’s gloomy warnings and possible solutions. After half an hour, a man with rimless glasses turned to a tall, younger man, who had stayed quiet in the background.
'Fujimoto-san. What would you do about this, if you could?'
Kenji Fujimoto stood up, alert. He ventured, ‘I do have some ideas, Ito-san. Would you like to hear about them?’ He pushed a lock of unruly hair from his eyes.
‘At this point, we are ready for any options,’ Ito replied.
Kenji pulled a map from his briefcase and unfolded it before speaking. At first, only Ito listened. But as Kenji went on, the casual conversation between the other two died down, and they paid closer attention. One of them signalled to the bartender to serve another round of beer.
By the time he answered all their questions, it was almost midnight, and the last train would be leaving soon. Kenji mentioned the lateness of the hour. Ito-san considered each of the other three men.
After a long moment, he said, 'I will pay.’
Kenji and the others thanked him for his hospitality. He interrupted – the prerogative of the most senior member of the group. ‘No, no, no. Fujimoto-san. I will pay for your plan.'
‘What?’
‘It is November. Can we have everything in place for February?'
Kenji bowed deeply. ‘Ito-san, I will put together a team and prepare a complete project plan for you. We will make it our united goal to put everything in place by the time the ice arrives.’
‘Good. I have already given you my card, I believe? Please contact my secretary to make an appointment for Monday morning.’
12.10 am, Saturday, November 14, 2026
Penang, Malaysia – 8 Gurney Drive
Hans had just stood up from his gaming console and was stretching after an all-out raid with Ivan, when his laptop pinged with an unfamiliar chime. A moment later, he realised that he did recognise it, after all: it was from the Line app, which he hadn’t used since the days when he worked in Japan.
He was delighted to see that the message was from Kenji Fujimoto, a man he worked with for several months soon after arriving in Osaka. Kenji had been a grad student at the time and was now an assistant professor of oceanography. Hans was still learning Japanese, but Kenji spoke and wrote English well, having grown up next door to an American military base. They had earned each other’s mutual trust. Hans typed out an immediate reply.
> Kenji! Long time no see. How are you?
> I am very well, thank you, Hans!
> Good to hear from you. What’s up?
> I am very sorry to bother you, but I have just been asked to develop a new project and would like your advice.
Hans smiled and replied, falling into the pattern of conversation he had learned during his time there. He continued typing:
> Would be honoured to help! My advice probably useless tho. You’re the expert.
> I have good news. Last night, I met Mr Ito, an industrialist, and I told him all about our plan.
Hans smiled again as he replied.
> *Our* plan? The Arctic plan? It’s *your* plan LOL. I just listened while you developed it.
> Your contribution was valuable. But I was surprised that Mr Ito has agreed to pay for a large-scale trial. I asked him for $2 million, and he said yes.
> Really? OMG. That’s incredible. Congratulations!!1!
> However, Hans, I need your help. I do not know what to do next.
> Would love to work on it with you right now if I weren’t committed here in Fairhaven. Will do what I can. Tell me about Mr Ito.
> He owns and runs a big machinery company, Rakki. It is well known in Japan.
> Good. U can tap into their resources. Ask for help w/ equipment procurement.
> What else?
> Dedicated procurement specialist. Defined budget. SAP code. a Gantt chart. Project administrator. Technical specialists. Specific equipment to do the project.
> What about the experiments?
> That’s the easy part LOL. U need to try all methods to make the ice thicker. Conventional flooding, snow cannons, fire monitors. Don’t buy the equipment – try to rent. Ask for funding for specialists to operate it.
> Did I ask for enough money? I made a rough estimate.
> $2 mn? Should be enough for 1 season trial. Tugboat runs ~$10-15K per day, including crew, not including fuel. Snow cannon, pumps etc will be much cheaper. You need to prepare a decent budget tho.
> Thank you very much, Hans. It is late here, and I must go to bed. I must give a lecture tomorrow morning at 8.00am.
> Np. Great news. Keep me posted.
Read chapter 5 here