Dr. Chef scoffed. “In other words, the Toremi Ka get big GC battleships sitting on their borders, and the GC gets easy access to all the ambi sitting on the other side of their border.” He shook his head. “No good can come from a species at war with itself. Never has, never will.” His eyes grew small, and he hrummed deeply. Sissix knew his thoughts had gone to his own people, his own war. She reached out and squeezed his top-most shoulder. His eyes grew large again, focusing on her. He came back. He puffed his cheeks and laid one of his handfeet atop her claws.
“Wait,” Ashby said. “Huh.”
“What?” Sissix said.
He blinked. “This is what Yoshi was talking about.” He looked at Sissix. She understood.
“We could do this,” she said, and nodded. “Yeah, we could handle this.”
“Handle what?” Dr. Chef said.
“If they’re going to be mining and pulling ambi, they need a way to get their hauls back home.”
“And they’re going to need single-ship hops in place before they can start thinking about convoy tunnels,” Ashby said. He straightened up, deep in thought. “This is exactly the kind of work that could get us ahead. A job like this, they’re not going to paying small.”
“Work,” repeated Dr. Chef. “You want to work out there? With those people?”
“Every tunneler’s going to jump on this once they hear the news,” Sissix said.
“Then we better beat them to it,” said Ashby. “Let’s go draft a letter of intent. We need to call Yoshi, too.”
“You think he’s big enough to lead a project like that?”
“Oh, no chance. But he’ll know who to contact. I’ll have Lovey send him a sib invite, I have no idea what time it is there. And you’ll need to help me figure out roughly how long it would take us to get to Central space from our current location. I’m assuming that’s where they’ll want us to punch from. Is Rosemary up yet?”
Sissix remembered the last time she’d seen Rosemary the night before: head propped against her palm, smiling from ear to ear, words slurring thickly. “I’m going to guess she’s still asleep.”
Ashby rolled his eyes. “Get her some SoberUps. This is exactly the sort of thing I hired a clerk for.”
“I’ll fix her a plate of breakfast,” Dr. Chef said. He wagged a finger at Sissix. “You tell the techs they picked a terrible night to break her in.”
“To be fair,” Sissix said, getting to her feet. “I don’t think they were planning on the GC losing its mind.”
Received message
Encryption: 1
From: Vlae Mok Han’sib’in (path: 4589-556-17)
To: Ashby Santoso (path: 7182-312-95)
Subject: Tokath/Hedra Ka project
Kind greetings, Captain Santoso. My name is Vlae Mok Han’sib’in, and I am writing to you on behalf of the GC Transportation Board. We have received your letter of intent regarding tunnel construction into Toremi Ka space. Connecting our allies to existing GC territories is a high priority for the Commons Parliament, and we have great need for skilled contractors such as yourself to help us enter into this new chapter of interspecies cooperation.
After reviewing your work record and assessing our needs, we agree that the Wayfarer would be an excellent choice to assist in our endeavors with the Toremi Ka. This assessment is reflective not only of your professional expertise, but also of your recent decision to employ a certified clerk. We see the latter as a sign of your dedication to upholding the standards of the GC Transportation Board.
We are pleased to offer you the following project. The GC is in need of a new single-ship tunnel connecting Central space (Tokath Gateway) to Hedra Ka, the capital planet in Toremi Ka territory. This would eliminate our current reliance on pinhole tugs in that sector, and would be our first step toward establishing cargo convoy tunnels. Before you accept, we ask you to carefully consider the conditions of this project.
Normally, a blind punch would be the most expedient means of connecting to an unanchored territory. However, Hedra Ka is located in a soft zone. As I am sure you are aware, the environmental risk factors in such an area make a blind punch from Tokath nearly impossible. In the interest of protecting both spatial stability and sapient life, this project would require an anchored punch between Hedra Ka and the Tokath Gateway. As there are currently no tunnels that connect GC and Toremi space, this poses a challenge. We propose that the Wayfarer travels to the Del’lek Lookout Station, at the GC border. This is the closest anchored point between GC space and Hedra Ka. A pinhole tug would rendezvous with you there, in order to bring your ship through to Hedra Ka. Given your current position, we estimate that a journey to Del’lek would take between 0.8 and 0.9 standards, depending on your choice of route. The pinhole jump would take an additional four days. To help cut down your travel time, the GC would hire another contractor to place the exit cage at Tokath in advance.
We understand that this is an unusual proposal, but given the circumstances, we do not have (nor require) a more expedient plan for completing this project. We also understand that the required travel time represents a significant commitment from yourself and your crew. The GC is willing to cover your basic living and operational expenses during the duration of your travels, in addition to your payment for the project. We also understand that space travel can impose unexpected delays, and that the mental health of your crew will require occasional rest stops along the way. In light of these needs, we do not demand a specific arrival date, but instead require that you arrive at any time before 165/307. You will also have the freedom to chart your own flight path and make stops as you see fit, though an efficient route is obviously a priority. If you are not confident that your crew or your ship can withstand this journey, it is best that you do not accept this project.
The offered payment for the Hedra Ka project is 36M credits (expenses not included; non-negotiable). We will expect a reply from you by 155/306. This project will not be offered to any other contractors during that time, so please do not make a hasty decision. If you have any questions regarding this project, feel free to contact my office. If I am not available, my AI, Tugu, will be able to assist you.
With gracious regards,
Ashby (00:10): sissix, are you there?
(00:11): pick up your scrib
(00:14): hello?
Sissix (00:15): text
(00:15): realy
(00:16): how fuckng quaint
Ashby (00:16): did i wake you up?