bargaining
“Well. Look, Doctor. You’ve been with us a time, and it’s been good, having you here. You’ve helped us out. Saved some lives, and there isn’t really anyway to thank you enough for that.” Caban paused, and I detected a flicker beneath his smooth demeanor, so slight I am sure everyone else missed it. The pause was for effect.
“The thing is…times are hard. We’ve been rusting our bolts just finding a decent job.” He didn’t say that it was Mezaro’s fault, but we all knew it was, at least as best as we could figure it. Ice and I had talked with Caban, both concurrently and separately, about remedying the situation. We needed a change to avoid dropping out of the sky.
“I think that it would make more sense if you were to find work elsewhere.”
Mezaro looked at him, a half-smile on his friendly face. “Why?”
“You had a good business before you jumped aboard with us. Now, we’re barely pulling in coin, and you’re getting the smallest cut of it.”
“You could give me a bigger cut.” Mezaro gave a moment for that to sink in, then laughed. “I don’t need a bigger cut. I got plenty of coin, I’m not worried about profit.”
Caban blinked, and I saw him calculating rapidly. Ice’s breathing changed briefly, but she did not twitch. She had been adamant that she did not trust the Doctor, despite his lifesaving work for us, he killed as easily as he healed. There was no reason for who he chose to destroy and who he chose to save.
“You did pick up and leave your business, are you concerned for how it’s faring? Your contacts left blast-end behind?”
“I was a link in the chain, there is others to replace me. Not many of ‘em knew me. And, as you say, it was a bloody business.”
“Ours isn’t much better.”
“ It’s something new, that’s what I’m after.”
“Well. What I’m trying to say is that we can’t afford to keep you aboard, Running like we are. It would be best business for you to start up again, and best for us if we could work with you as a contact on the ground. Finding us jobs.”
Mezaro considered this. “That does make some sense” he finally conceded, and Ice nearly twitched once again. “But I don’t want to stop Running. I have a taste for it now. I don’t need to get paid for being crew. Hire me as a doctor. Or I can pay you passenger wages.”
The man was dead set against leaving our ship. Caban didn’t take his coin, but he told him to think about it during our next job. I only hope we survive our next job with him aboard.
“The thing is…times are hard. We’ve been rusting our bolts just finding a decent job.” He didn’t say that it was Mezaro’s fault, but we all knew it was, at least as best as we could figure it. Ice and I had talked with Caban, both concurrently and separately, about remedying the situation. We needed a change to avoid dropping out of the sky.
“I think that it would make more sense if you were to find work elsewhere.”
Mezaro looked at him, a half-smile on his friendly face. “Why?”
“You had a good business before you jumped aboard with us. Now, we’re barely pulling in coin, and you’re getting the smallest cut of it.”
“You could give me a bigger cut.” Mezaro gave a moment for that to sink in, then laughed. “I don’t need a bigger cut. I got plenty of coin, I’m not worried about profit.”
Caban blinked, and I saw him calculating rapidly. Ice’s breathing changed briefly, but she did not twitch. She had been adamant that she did not trust the Doctor, despite his lifesaving work for us, he killed as easily as he healed. There was no reason for who he chose to destroy and who he chose to save.
“You did pick up and leave your business, are you concerned for how it’s faring? Your contacts left blast-end behind?”
“I was a link in the chain, there is others to replace me. Not many of ‘em knew me. And, as you say, it was a bloody business.”
“Ours isn’t much better.”
“ It’s something new, that’s what I’m after.”
“Well. What I’m trying to say is that we can’t afford to keep you aboard, Running like we are. It would be best business for you to start up again, and best for us if we could work with you as a contact on the ground. Finding us jobs.”
Mezaro considered this. “That does make some sense” he finally conceded, and Ice nearly twitched once again. “But I don’t want to stop Running. I have a taste for it now. I don’t need to get paid for being crew. Hire me as a doctor. Or I can pay you passenger wages.”
The man was dead set against leaving our ship. Caban didn’t take his coin, but he told him to think about it during our next job. I only hope we survive our next job with him aboard.
posted by Scout | 1:46 AM
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