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Her nails tapped against her thigh repeatedly as she huffed quietly to herself, trying to force air into her lungs. If she didn’t actively try to remind herself to breathe she might end up forgetting. It tended to happen when she got into one of these moods. Her entire body would shiver with anxiety as a little flutter moved down from her chest and into the pit of her stomach, her mind reeling as she tried to process the situation in front of her.
The half-breed not too terribly long ago had gotten into contact with the Captain of the Blackguard again through a couple of guards she was friendly with. Though that was a rather vague term as the number itself seemed to increase with every passing season. She made certain to emphasize the fact this wasn’t related to any of her recent cartography assignments, and she’d left it at that hoping that he would understand what she was trying to get across. This wasn’t about her duties as a liaison to the mutant village, her goals in reaching out to him were completely personal in motivation. Selfish almost, since the ultimate goal of doing this was to better make more money and get a foothold in the city. Her nature and job often left her outside the city and while she was popular there it had its drawbacks. But the only reason she wanted to get more power and notoriety was so she could better take care of everyone.
She tried not to allow herself to be reminded of her own recent moral dilemma’s concerning her relationship to a certain bounty marked bird. She wondered quietly what would become of it all. Considering the path things were going down, it was only a matter of time before one of them broke. Neither had acknowledged the fact of their contrasting personalities and morals. They’d simply lived in the moment and mostly disregarded each other outside of their normal meetings. She particularly refused to acknowledge the work and the personality of her lover. But that couldn’t go on forever. She knew well enough that one of them was either going to have to bend at the other’s will or break the relationship in half. It then left her with the question of if she should bend or break, a rather uncomfortable question that she didn’t want to answer.
She pushed those thoughts aside to deal with the question at hand. Convincing the captain of the guard why he should let her start this little project of hers. She had to do this, it was the easiest and quickest way to reach her most immediate goals. It also would allow her a much greater range when it came to helping other that wasn't straight out joining the Blackguard. An idea that honestly filled her with dread. For all her popularity within it, she had her doubts as to how well she'd be able to work with it. If he so allowed her the right of starting this idea, she'd have it up by next season. It would make life so much easier on the half-breed…
After setting up the meeting through another guard she’d been given a place and time to meet with the Captain. She’d gone over her sales pitch meticulously in her head putting her words on a silent repeat, listing out all the pros of this so she could better convince him to let her go through with it. Now that she was actually faced with giving her pitch her words seemed to all but die in her throat.
“Captain,” she said simply instead, not knowing where to begin. Out of respect, she gave a quick dip of her head in some semblance of a bow, though her presence was noticeably a lot stiffer than the first time the pair had met. For one this was on her request, something wasn’t being asked of her. Doing the asking made the situation a lot harder. On with that, she was just speaking to the Captain as he was the one she needed to get this cleared by if she didn’t want to get in any kind of trouble upon its discovery. If she actually managed to go through with it, it was his toes she might actually step on. Of course, it was also his toes she'd keep from getting stepped on in the future.
She tried to build up some kind of confidence reminding herself that she could make this to his benefit. This would be to his benefit considering what she was offering to do, but it didn’t stop her heart from beating furiously in a rolling thunderous thud. What if he didn’t like the idea? What if she ended up ruining what few connections she had by offering up a bad idea. Her right hand ended up shoving itself into her pocket until it came into contact with a small beautiful gem. Drawing small circles on it with her thumb she felt herself begin to calm, the familiar effects of what she’d been left behind after the mess of a puzzle game where she choked at the moment when it was most important.
Was there ever a time that an interruption to trial-to-trial routine was not both a welcome diversion and a nuisance? Black Guard Captain Berrit Segrille sighed heavily even at the mere approach of a subordinate. It would always be something involving the highest required level of authority when underlings were passed this far up the command chain.
What was it this time? Did one of the ministers get caught at the Curley Hare, perhaps? The last time, the bastard had actually expected Capt. Segrille to preemptively charge the prostitute with some crime serious enough to merit an agreed-upon exchange of silence. He remembered asking the man which crime should she be charged with, and having the fellow just shrug, and say 'whatever is serious enough to keep her from blabbing anything embarrassing to my wife'.
Segrille yawned in the present as he recalled the yawn though which he'd continued the conversation then, 'Does your wife make a common habit of visiting the Curley Hare, Minister?'
It ended up being even more hilarious than he'd intended, due to the Minister assuming it was meant as an insult. Truth was, Segrille had asked the question with complete seriousness, though he hadn't intended to suggest he was actually going to trump-up a false charge against the girl. But the man had gotten amusingly furious, demanding to know if the Captain was suggesting that his wife did not find him 'satisfactory' in such capacity.
All that Segrille had really meant to suggest was that the minister's wife may well visit the brothel off and on for a long time yet. And that therefore the span of imprisonment he was being asked to inflict upon an innocent girl would be equally long. But the paths that the politician's mind followed got more and more ridiculous and comical with each new remark. The Minister figured that if not going there for a man, then the Captain was suggesting that his wife was going there for a woman.
The Captain's shrug, with the attitude of 'Yeah, okay. So what?' only seemed to enrage the idiot more. It turned out that the Minister had the notion that if a man's wife sought the intimate company of other women, even if only rarely, that it somehow proved that HE must be after the intimate company of other men.
The second shrug of 'Yeah, okay. So what?' put the man over the edge. Captain Segrille looked back on the event with appreciation of the sweet irony that it was that very wife that came to collect the Minister from a cell the next trial on a charge of assaulting a Black Guard captain...
Such reminiscences gave him hope that this approaching soldier might task him with settling some equally amusing political incident. But it was not to be. The soldier came up to him, clearly unsure of why the Captain himself needed to speak to "The girl...the avriel one...you know...with wings."
Had he not already been mildly chuckling over the memory of the Minister, he could have probably informed the young trooper that he knew that avriel had wings with a straight face. But it was not to be. He laughed and clapped the young man on the shoulder and told him he would be right out, and to have the girl wait in his office, "You know... the one with a door...and a desk" he added for clarity.
The young man blushed right down to his ear lobes as he retreated to do as instructed. Segrille finished up confirming the morning's reports, and signing them off for follow-up. Now the amusement drained from his mood. Why was she here? Had things in Lakewatch already started to unravel in some way? As liaison to the mutant community there, the escaped remnants of Padfoot's debacle, he assumed it had to do with something going on there. Had the Empathy ward he and Lady Terris given her failed somehow?
This last thought applied a guarded look to his expression as he entered his office to find her sitting there, looking every bit as nervous as he felt. He noted the hand shoved away in her pocket, and wondered what she was holding there. Had the mutant leader planned some mischief? Had he powered through the ward he'd provided them, just so he could brainwash this avriel into doing some kind of dirty work? "Miss Eld?" he began, his eyes as much on the pocketed hand as her face. "Is there some problem I can help you with?"
The woman immediately took note of what she assumed to be worry so she was quick to speak once more. “I’m not sure if the guard I asked to get you transferred this part of the message, but this isn’t about my recent cartography work!” She was quick to spit out the words as a furious blush overtook her cheeks. “I had no intention to worry you and I truly apologize if I did. I actually came here to voice a personal request,” she said. What a lovely way to start this conversation off. Her eyes darted around and her voice sounded panicked as she quickly explained that this had nothing to do with Lakewatch while trying to not actually speak the name of the town. “Everything is perfectly fine on the cartography front,” she sighed slightly as her shoulders sagged, embarrassment and guilt mixing on her features. “I didn’t mean to worry you,” she repeated once more like a child that was frantically apologizing for the smallest of mistakes. Of course, a lot of psychologists also said repeated apologies over small matters were a sign of abuse.
She straightening slightly trying to force away from the cherry tone marring her features. It didn’t work, and her cheeks only started to feel hotter. Great job, lovely job, well done. A++ way to start! “I’m going to be starting a business this next season. I’ve already contacted the citizen's committee the other day, but they recommended I also come to you considering one of the services I want to offer,” she said as she tried to gather together her scattered thoughts. Every time she seemed to grasp one it jumped from her grip and she was left feeling even more tongue-tied. “Excuse me,” she muttered very quietly as she tried to clear her throat. Her hands were visibly shaking. Mostly it was due to the face she was terrified of making a fool of herself, which she already seemed to be doing, but she started to get even more worried that Captain might think the fear was due to something else. She’d hate for him to think her a coward. “I’m sorry,” she muttered once more as she ripped at her train of thought trying to keep it on topic.
“I, um. I uh. I wanted to start a business that would partially help to teach citizens how to defend themselves. I could teach classes on various weaponry and what not. But, uh, I don’t want to just abandon my work as a mercenary since, um, that would leave a lot of outer city citizens with no one to turn to! My idea is that I could have citizens who needed jobs done that the Black Guard was too occupied to take care of could come to us and me or one of my employees slash trusted partners could handle the job,” She had never floundered so terribly in front of another person. But something about the captain of the Black Guard was deeply intimidating. It was a cross of different things. His connections with Lady Terris, how much power he himself had, and the fact that she wasn’t sure what kind of commander he was. Her two experiences with the man were one of him being considerably kind in nature, and the other he stabbed an innocent man because of a mess that someone else caused because they got heated over a stupid game. Obviously, those were two rather contradictory things, and the half-breed wasn’t sure if he’d only been kind in nature that one time because Lady Terris had in fact been present.
She quickly jumped to continue explaining, worried that he might shut her down before she finished because it seemed like too much trouble. “Of course, I would take a record of any job we took and completed so I could send it to you. You would have full assurance that anyone working with me would keep in line with the wishes of the Black Guard and the laws of the city. On top of that, it might help bring a little order to the mercenary and bounty hunter populations! And that, of course, would mean there would be fewer problems in the long run. Fewer mercenaries fighting over jobs or threatening citizens to pay them extra. It would be safer for the citizens and easier on the guards!” There was the slightest him of confidence in her voice as she’d thought this idea through quite thoroughly. There was noticeably less hesitation in her sales pitch, likely because she was trying to convince someone of something instead of asking someone for something.
After she was done speaking she waited patiently and quietly for his jurisdiction on the topic, her eyes trying to keep focused on him, but occasionally darting away with a shy fear. Her fingers played with the bottom of her shirt as she seemed impossible of remaining still in this instance.
There will always be advice on how to "defuse" a situation. Captain Segrille had certainly passed on volumes of such instruction to his men. But these were incidents of the law being broken, or on the verge it. Simple social miscues were only slightly easier for him than for his current guest. He knew that the authority he wielded made any hint of displeasure a thing of which many would be apprehensive at least.
He also knew that the guarded demeanor with which he'd entered his office had only added to the worry presently afflicting the avriel woman now twitching and twisting her hems in anxiety. He had thought that the relief had been plain enough on his face to put her at ease. But as she went on over-apologizing and over-explaining her purpose, he realized his sigh may have come off as one of taxed patience.
Many angles of difficulty boxed him in now. His own behavior had been part of it, so he didn't want to come of as if it was all on her by going through the traditional "calm down" gestures. Also, some of the men were looking in through the window behind her; and if he made such a gesture, they might have taken it more seriously than it truly was.
There was also an element of condescension he wanted to avoid. Talking down to another that way, even when they genuinely are overly upset, often just comes off as insulting to them. It can easily appear to be an unspoken comment on being the only "mature" one in the room. And if his sigh had come off wrong, as he now suspected, it would only add to this misconception.
Most of the time, Captain Segrille did not much care how others took his attitude. Usually they were drunk or paranoid or just, yes, immature; and it was just too damn bad if they didn't like the truth being thrust in their face. But he knew there was enough incidental history between the two of them to discard as irrelevant. Also, he genuinely liked this woman.
They both knew the law was not perfect; that actual justice was often served best by departing from it to some degree. He was probably more willing to do so than she was, but he felt that was probably due as much to his familiarity with the law as anything resembling "corruption". There were surely a number of times where she had simply done what felt right, and really had no idea how close to, or far from, the letter-of-the-law her actions had been. What it really came down to was that he knew very well that if Etzos had more citizens like Nightshade Eld, there would be far less trouble.
By now he had, somewhat absently, waved off any need for further apologies. He was actually ready to apologize to her, in recognition of the fact that all his introspection had diverted his attention from what she'd just said - something about starting her own business. He was too embarrassed to ask her to repeat herself. And as it turned out, it was not necessary anyway.
A smile lit his face as he realized that it was now a good thing that she was repeating herself so fully. But the smile faded quickly. Not because anything she said was bad news, or difficult to work out. It was that it had so many peripheral benefits, that his brow just naturally furrowed with seriousness as he concentrated on them.
He sat back now, giving her a direct look. Her nervousness was strongly displayed in just about every aspect of her presence. He could not help but tease her just a bit as he leaned forward, all business. "Miss Eld. I want you to listen to me very carefully..."
Normally, this would precede some order never to be seen here or there, or never to do this or that, or to flat get out of town by dawn. But a crack of a smile breached this facade as he continued. "I think that is an outstanding idea. One of the best I've ever had a citizen approach me with. Normally, they are ideas of what they think I can do improve some aspect of life here. And it is always an aspect that seems to help them more than most."
His smile broadened with appreciation. "But you are here to propose something you can do to help, and just seek to smooth out the inevitable problems from the likely overlap of jurisdictions. I think it will be a huge help to us. And it solves several other problems. It gives you a legit cover when you need to see me about "Cartography" issues, as well as being a good, alternate reason why Jill and...errr....Lady Terris and I would have given you that "Liaison" title."
His blush was brief as a new idea raised his eyebrows, "And that title can just as well be said to represent a status as go-between for this effort, and not related to 'Cartography' at all." he sat back again, "You know, if it was anyone else, I'd figure they're just after some sort of honorary militia status to help them line their pockets and make us look bad. Oh, that reminds me...are you needing a loan for this?"
The woman seemed to positively light up when he gave her what sounded like a positive affirmation of her idea. Her eyes glittered as he spoke to her and she listened very carefully. She hadn't realized just how many problems this would solve when she walked into the office. Instead, she had simply wanted to do something good for the city. She still did. But this right here, this proved she could do even more good than she first suspected that she could! It boded well for the future and practically left her feeling a little light-headed with joy. All the fear that had been relatively easy to see in her lack of a poker face was quickly replaced by happiness. The half-breed in no way was doing this for money or status. Maybe, in the long run, it helped her name get a little farther across the city, but her purposes in that were simply so people would take her a little more seriously if she told them to stop doing something. But the most important part of all of this was the fact she'd be better able to protect people.
In truth, the woman had never been a 'letter of the law' type of creature. True honor, or justice, could never come from letter of the law. Words were strick and unchanging, while situations were varied and ultimately mortal in nature. She'd always been a 'spirit of the law' type and had no problems bending a situation until it snapped if it meant she was able to protect the most innocent people. This helped with that situation a lot as now it gave her a little more room for action as well as a wider-reaching grasp.
"Loan?" She asked, the question was quiet and more so directed at herself. "I'm not sure... I'm not completely sure how much a building and everything is going to cost. I don't really buy things often. I'm sufficient enough at hunting and foraging for myself so most of the time the only spending I do is in Cylus when it's a touch harder to find food. Other than the really, really big city tax..." She paused for a minute, wondering why so much of her paycheck was usually lost to taxes. It was honestly getting into the 1000s now which was ridiculous for someone who lived in a cave and ate berries most of the time. "I don't spend anything. I'm not sure if I'd need a loan, is 30,000 gold nels enough?" She asked. By the look on her face, she was honestly unsure, even though anyone who was rather aware of money would be able to tell her that yes, that was plenty.
If the Captain had been trying to play some role in some theater comedy presentation, he could hardly have done better. His eyes bugged and his jaw dropped open, as he flopped back into his seat. "Are you kidding me?...thirty thousand? Sintra's Shit Nuggets! I had no idea Cartography paid so well."
He shook his head in amusement. "And here I was gonna tell you to visit the Housing Commision to set up payments on some modest home unit that could be remodelled to accommodate some sort of open exercise room. But 'Thelle, you can go there and just ask her to list empty storehouses available, and pick which one you want."
He sat back, muttering figures for a moment, "Easy 2500 square feet...probably...6 times 5...3 thousand for one with all the inner structure...each story....you'd want high ceilings for swinging some weapons...Sauncraft would be cheaper than Losten, and he can make perfectly good mastercraft weapons; training versions too...hmmm....but Losten has more experience with the practice set-ups and dummies and such...usually hits us for a thousand each when we need restocking...oh, padded suits, another 5 or 6 hundred...."
He sat, tapping fingers together, his eyes on some chalkboard in his mind. "Well, if you want one made of something remotely stylish, Stone would be cooler in Saun, and warmer in Cylus, probably make a good 6 thousand for a single story, 12 for two, 13 with the high ceiling, plus two for the outfitting. Maybe a few hundred more for some nice doors and barred windows...I don't know exactly; but if you've got actual NEL, they ought to give you a discount. Probably end up about 6 or 7 Thousand for a decked-out single story; 10 or 11 for two."
His somewhat pained expression made it clear that he still wasn't quite convinced that she had the funds. "You sure about this now? I mean, I'm sure Miss Mora can locate whatever you want. Then you'll need to go to the smiths for the weps and dummies. Oh and the smiths will actually have the padded suits as well. It's what they fill in their plate gear with. Maybe get a little of it from every smith in town. They get testy selling off the padding if you don't buy any plate."
He chuckled to himself, and took a few bits to write up some figures, singing it with a flourish. "Here, take this with you when you visit Miss Mora at the Housing Office. She can be a bit of a....test...sometimes. She'll think you're playing a joke on her if you don't show my endorsement."
She laughed lightly at the captain's response. "It typically doesn't on my own. I do a lot of mercenary work in the outer city since it's harder for the guards to get out there, not to mention I'm a bit more valuable than the average scribe..." She stretched her wings to make the point. Despite how much everyone around her (still) seemed to hate her she was valuable for her ability to fly. She could get around faster and get a better scope of the local area. As the Captain went over his various measurements he seemed a little uncertain that she had the money. She blinked a couple times uncertain how to handle it. "I promise you that I by no means am lying about how much I have, and if you'd prefer, I can show you right now to prove it," she said sounding rather unamused. She had all the money on her too. A couple seasons ago she'd found a magical coin purse that never seemed to fill up and could convert nels as she pleased. She'd been rather amused by and definitely did not give an onyx nel to a random someone for the hell of it.
She nodded as the captain handed her the note with a nod. She'd remembered peaking into Mora's office when she first came into town an turning tail within an instant. Perhaps that was how she'd ended up living in a cave... She had the full intention of walking away at that moment, having what she'd come here for and knowing roughly what kind of price she'd be paying. Easily within her budget, while also being a nice place to start off. If the need ever came there was also always the potential for expansion, and part of her wondered if she could bring this to other cities after enough time passed. Her mind raced with the new possibilities accessible to her. When she stalled for a moment. Another thought occurred to her. It had been one she'd been toying with for some time but this one truly worried her when it came to approaching the idea. However, the captain had been welcoming enough to her ideas so far.
"If you'd humor me for a moment longer I actually had a question, as well as another idea you might be interested in. Sir, do you have any knowledge as to what happens to the taxes collected at the end of every season?". For someone who lived in a cave and mostly hunted for herself the amount of taxes she'd been paying seemed to increase ever season. It was rediculious the amount of money that she had no idea where it went. Her next idea might be a bit of a dangerous one to put into play, but it would certainly be helpful to the city in the long run. Or so she hoped. Depending on what the answer to her question turned out to be.
"Common"
"Ith'ession"
(As a quick note, the coin pouch is from the point bank. After the site description challenge I won and took this as one of my two rewards)
"Well..." Captain Segrille chuckled, "You must have taken jobs from some pretty deep pockets." A look of regret stifled his chuckling as he perceived that he'd offended his guest somewhat. "No, no, Miss Eld. I meant no implication of favoritism. I am well aware that favoritism would be just about the last thing you'd benefit from in this town. And I do not by any means think you're lying. I guess I'm just surprised that you've got almost as much saved away as I do."
he cupped his chin in his hand now, though, as he ran some details through his mind, "But come to think of it, you have very little cost to cover out there where you're staying. Have you thought of asking about moving into the inner circle, while you talk to Miss Mora? That note will help in that regard as well. You're clearly making enough to afford it."
Even as he said it, he doubted the half-breed would be interested in moving into a "higher-class" neighborhood. With the prejudices she was facing even among the poor, what would the snobs of the inner ring say? Some people enjoyed bringing social upheavals to those types, and he had no real objection to the clamor that resulted. It was often fairly amusing.
But Night had come to be known as a peacekeeper more than a punisher. She would probably prefer to live in peaceful squalor, than force an uproar on a neighborhood. In a sense, that degree of selflessness was kind of disappointing. But he could appreciate that the constant fight against snobbish exclusion could get old enough to make an acceptance of a peaceful compromise fairly appealing.
He had this injustice on his mind as he realized she'd asked him something about taxes. "I'm sorry...Taxes?...What do we DO with them?" he stammered momentarily. "Well, we collect them, and count them up, of course. We divide them into what categories have pressing needs, and we apply them accordingly."
He sighed in disgust, "Of course, there are always those that find some way to gain an exemption in return for some political favor. Usually, the richer folks are the ones that get away with this shit, but for the most part, taxes are pretty evenly applied. But you don't even live in the city. Thelle, not even the outer perimeter. I don't think you even pay a domestic tax..." He noted the look that fixed upon her face at this remark, "...do you?"
Now his own brow furrowed at the thought that this generous woman was being cheated by falsified tax obligations. "Okay, what is going on? What did you want to tell me?"
As expected the half-breed shook her head. “There would be no point. I have a perfectly good place to live outside of town, my wings are quick enough that it doesn’t take much time getting to work, and honestly, if I wanted to stay in town I’m buying the building for the business. I would just… sleep on the floor or something! Besides, I’m not sure how well I’d get along with some of those living in the inner city. I get on well enough with the guard and those living in the outer city because the work I do. But I truly doubt I hold much favor in the eyes and hearts of those I’d end up living next to. While I would eventually like to make a push in that direction, I feel I’d like to start building up a stronger base,” her voice trailed off and there was a flicker of something plotting in her eyes. The blue-grey orbs darted around in calculation.
“Yes, I believe if I was to buy an inner-city house I’d want to wait for another arc,” her mutters came with a narrowing of her eyes. She jolted slightly when she pulled herself from her thoughts with a quick shake of her head. “I do wonder though. How hard would it be to start winning a little favor and equality in that area? Perhaps… Yes, perhaps…”[/url] After that she felt silent in order to better listen to the Captain.
She listened quietly as she watched his expression shifting at the mention of tax. She smirked, an expression that was bittersweet at best. “Correct, I’m not supposed to be paying too high taxes considering I live in an area that isn’t even technically ‘owned’ by the city. By most means, the area should be free land. So by that assumption, I shouldn’t be paying too weighty a tax, correct? For various reason, I’ve found that it’s a bit easier to do calculations on what I’ll be making in the next season when I get paid for the current season, so I’ve already done all of my math. By my calculations, I should be making roughly 6000gn. That isn’t the exact amount, but a rough calculation judging by the fact a large portion of my time might end up being spent out of town. I’m trying to set up something of a business partner and I’m taking the chance to map areas a little farther than Etzos for my boss so that I can still make my wages,” She paused once again as she sighed heavily, the thoughts of next season being crowded, to say the least.
“Out of all that, I’m planned to pay 1200gn for taxes. I asked you, for what?” She said with a slight shake of her head. “Not only is that much money is a ludicrous sum considering where and how I live! And in addition, I worry where that money is going. Over the course of the last season, I’ve seen at least 3 charities that could have been funded with my taxes but are presently barely being kept afloat by what small sums the citizenry is willing to donate or popular politicians are willing to toss in order to gain favor. And that’s generally just distressing because while I understand that a lot of taxes go towards the army and the guard, I wonder where the rest of it is going. It’s just that my anxiety is that 1200gn I’m losing next season is going into a politician’s pocket.
“It’s not like I myself need it, obviously enough I don’t. But if I have to pay those many nels I at least want to know what I’m paying for so that I can be assured that they aren’t going into someone’s pocket. I’m not saying that I want my taxes lowered. It doesn’t do too much damage to me and I wouldn’t even think to complain if I knew they were going somewhere important. But at present, I just can’t see it and I wish I could allocate the funds myself. I want to be able to pay workers to make homes for the homeless, I want to upgrade orphanages, I want to buy shoes for the orphans! And that’s a large point of opening The Roost, so I can make more money and have more money to spend on all of the community service projects I’ve wanted to for seasons! And trust me, I already have plans to use the remaining nels after buying the building for just that. But I’m going to be pressed for money making sure that idea comes to fruition. Which is why I really wish that 1200 wasn’t just disappearing as far as I’m aware.” She wished there was something, anything she could do make it balance out a bit more.
The Captain sat quietly, finding little to dispute regarding his guest's certainty that she was currently best off where she was. There was little evidence to suggest that life in the inner circle would bring her anything but an endless barrage of contempt and veiled sneers. It was true that the upper classes rarely had much stake in the benefits of her efforts, paid or otherwise. He refrained from adding that he doubted that any number of arcs would alter that fact.
As her narrative changed to subjects more closely related to her finances, he began making notes of certain details. A suspicion grew steadily as she went on. "I believe you are being double-taxed, Night...Miss Eld, excuse me." he blurted suddenly, apologizing then for his over-familiarity.
His eyes narrowed as a new tactic that might have been plied against the woman occurred to him. "But I suspect you're being additionally levied from a higher bracket than you should. The bracket your bounty contractors belong to. I don't have the records here to verify this, but I can get them in a trial or two."
Her mention of numerical specifics brought a nod and a roll of his eyes. The anger began showing in a number of behavioral tics, and a difficulty in remaining seated. He was pacing now, his glare blazing into meetings he'd sat in on as such financial manipulations were originally hatched to negate the bulk of profits criminals gleaned from their schemes.
He slammed his fist suddenly on his desk top, "These methods were never supposed to be used against law-abiding citizens! Especially ones not even living in the city! These were intended as means of by-passing twisted laws, argued by twisted advocates, so profits or exemptions that were known be questionable in origin could be withheld at the source. I think someone has saddled you with this scam."
It almost broke his heart how this woman still allowed that it was not the injustice done to herself that troubled her; but rather the fact of money that could be spent altruistically was more likely becoming the padding in some political coffer. But then a simple trio of words brought him up short. He'd heard it before..."allocate the funds"...Someone else had made this same complaint and that phrase had figured into a way around it.
He heard very little of the rest of what Night was saying. When he suddenly grasped what was eluding him, he could only hope he had not interrupted anything too abruptly. "The Old Guard! Of course." he turned to his guest, gripping her shoulders enthusiastically, his face alight with eagerness. "I'm sure that's who it was. Their actual monetary value is too vague, as they are all about education and special programs of aid and sanctuary. As long as they show no profit of record in their own books, they are granted control of the overages of nel that remained at the end of any taxable period. Basically they get no benefit of any of the city's other programs, but neither are they bound to them."
He grinned conspiratorially, "I bet Old Lerry would be happy to put your company on his roster. You'd still have to pay your workers and instructors, technically out of your pocket of course. But your taxes would go into a reserve fund. You might have to allow that the Patron has equal access to them, but I can promise you he'd never dip into any one else' funds unless it was the kind of crisis you'd want him to use it for."
