"We're buying food, supplies and a place to land."
"Oh, stepping around the Visa scam, eh? Good lass. I'm guessin' Greydock wouldn't take you in?"
"How did you know?”
“Greydock doesn't take anyone without a visa unless you're one of their special guests. Where're your ships now?”
“They had us set down in the Dower Wastes.”
"Hope your crew isn't out there too."
"They are."
"Normally, I'd say you should take a slip for any price and put your ear to the ground. Find someone you don't mind doing business with then move your ships in. But since you're stuck in the Dower Wastes, I'd say you'll have to settle for the first slips you can afford. Don't try to go around the landlords, neither. Good way to get slagged."
"How does it work down there? I mean, the Port Authority is gone, so who settles disputes over landing sites?" Asked Laura.
"Lady, if I had time and you were paying well enough, I could find a dispute being settled right now. Every slice of this land comes at a price. Carthans set the outer boundaries to the port, and they blast anything that tries to land outside of it from space, but they don't care what happens inside.”
“So they fight for their territory.”
“All the time. Happens in the lower city by the wall too, but that’s a quieter kind of fight, more room-to-room, bad to get caught in. Ever since the AI’s were erased and the Confederation pulled out, crews fight for scraps of land, food, guns, whatever you can name. Best place to be is near the top of the food chain, or near enough to it.”
“Top of the food chain?” asked Jenny, looking a little green.
“Start purifying water, bringing in food, guns if you can get away with it, but you didn’t hear the last bit from me. Carthans don’t like gun runners, they take a bite from the only market they can corner. The established types know best. They call themselves Port Masters, say they have legal claim, but really, they were here longer, got to establish relations with each other and most importantly, they have the people and guns to make their boarders strong. If you can get in with one of them, it might be best, but you make all their enemies your own when you do.”
“So they're crime bosses?”
“You see law enforcement since you got here?” Asked the nafalli pilot with a chuckle. “They're the Governors.”
“There have got to be other ports on the moon.”
“Sure, but they're all the same except for Greydock. Carthans can't afford to rebuild or run them properly, and the Confederation would love to see this solar system destroy itself now that they’re being forced out. A lot of people miss the UCWC, but they're not coming back. I can’t stand listening to people belly ache about things they can’t change, the Confeds leaving qualifies right up there with the colour of the sky and the price of water. The way I see it; if Tamber is where you are, it’s either because you can’t find your way off or you’re riding an advantage that makes it worth your while.”
Ayan looked across the endless sea of ships and saw nothing familiar. Amongst the freighters, small haulers, luxury vessels and the myriad of cross classification ships there was nothing she'd ever seen before. "These people have ships, they could leave if they liked. Why don't they just move to another solar system if it's so dangerous?"
"That’s what’s really interesting about this place, a lot of people think they can get the advantage here, and there are a lot of opportunities. War's on, lass. Looks like there will be even more comin' before the year is out and the Carthans have a good chance to come through all right, or at least fight for a few decades. This is the front, especially if the rumours about the Confederation siding with the Order is true. Put that in along side with their deep pockets and you've got every jack of all trades, pirate and merc looking for work and finding it. Any merc can get work here, even a guy like me, who wouldn’t know which end of a rifle to hold. Head towards the core worlds and you'll find nothing but desperate people who can't wipe their own ass without an AI to give directions. Go further out and you'll probably get ambushed by slavers, pirates or AI ships that killed their crews and think they're part of the Eden Fleet. I bet you've already seen it."
“I'm afraid so.”
“Sorry to hear that, miss. Whereabouts did your ship run into trouble?”
“Some mining facility down spin from here. Didn't stay long enough to make it worth naming,” Ayan answered carefully. She'd been around Jason enough to know that she shouldn't give too much information without being sure of how it would be used. “We need a base of operations while we sort things out and make repairs.”
"Are you sure about taking a slip here?" Victor asked Ayan in a whisper.
"You think it's a bad idea?"
"I think it's a great idea, I'd be willing to raise my rifle and keep us safe too, but it's not up to me. You and-"
Ayan gave him a warning look, she didn't want to hear Jake's name aloud, or have anyone hear that there was another authority above her, especially in front of a cabbie who seemed to enjoy sharing information.
"You and the rest of the senior officers."
"I'd second the idea of securing space before we return to our ships, even though it looks like a disaster," Laura agreed. She was staring at a group of mag cycles making their way across the black and light blue mixed sand road just ahead. There were a dozen or more, and they snaked through the streets at a great speed, despite the fact that the riders seemed relaxed, riding at leisure one or two per vehicle.
"Like those? They were popular where I come from. Gangs loved them, hard to track on planetary sensors because they ride so low to the ground," Jenny commented with a smile. "And they're fast."
"They look dangerous."
"We called them skids, but I think those are the larger mag cycles. They're good for hauling ground transport."
"Still, looks dangerous. I mean, what's the point of being so close to the ground while you're moving so quickly? You're bound to collide with something."
"That's the thrill; you have to ride one to know it though. Not that I've tried, I prefer my go-betweens to have all sides covered," said the cabby over his shoulder as he pitched the vehicle down towards a side street. "Lots of people use 'em here though. Bike like that costs next to nothing used, and takes a beating like a heavy fighter. Good to have around if you're just bouncin' from one place to another, though I shouldn't say that, or you won't be calling someone like me back."
"Speaking of which, what's your ident so we can get you back here when we're done?" Ayan asked.
"Already sent it to your data unit there, just give me a buzz when all your business is sorted. Good luck." The shuttle touched down lightly and the doors opened as Ayan passed him a twenty-five GC coin. He gave her three fives back.
"Thank you for the safe ride," She smiled.
"My pleasure, lass. Grace like yours is always welcome in my cab."
“One more thing, can you tell me anything about the people who do business on this slip?” Ayan asked as everyone else was making their way off the shuttle.
The cabbie glanced over her shoulder; “This slip is just a storefront where a few Captains park, no one here actually owns anything except for maybe their own ship. The folks who trade here are selling someone else’s merchandise, probably set you up with a good deal. Lots of captured product comes through here, no knowing where it’s from and that’s the point of places like this. Most of the folks on this slip are British types from the Outer Core, I thought you knew 'em already, because of your accent.”
“I'm afraid not.”
“Well, treat 'em like any other Captains or merchants, with respect. Keep your eyes and ears open, don't ask too many questions and don't let them know where you keep your valuables.”