[1-200] THE MECH TOUCH

Chapter 133: Chamomile Tea

Ves took a seat at table in an upscale teahouse. The urban noise of downtown Freslin made its way through the open window by his side. Lucky lazily sat down on the windowsill, staring out at the harmless birds and critters darting about between the neatly planted trees.

Minutes later, Calsie climbed the stairs of the oriental establishment. This time she brought a guest with her. The older gentlemen by her side looked like a bureaucrat that never transitioned into the upper ranks. He also appeared to be rather frazzled.

"Mr. Larkinson, it's good to finally meet you." The old man greeted Ves while offering his hand. "The name's Linden Royce. I'm the Deputy Director of Stakeholder Relations of the Initiative for Pioneering."

Mr. Royce basically schmoozed with every businessman or official who expressed interest in the Pioneers. Though Ves preferred to speak with his boss, beggars couldn't be choosers.

"You can call me Ves."

"That's fine, just call me Linden."

"Before we get to business, let's order some tea, shall we?"

Ves ordered a pot of fragrant chamomile tea. It was his mother's favorite tea. The smell of it brought happy memories of a simpler time to his mind. A fleeting smile appeared on his face before a bump from Lucky brought him back to the present.

"That's a remarkable looking cat you've got there. Did you obtain it from the Carnegie Group?"

"No, I had him for a while. Lucky here is an exclusive creation from an inventor from the New Rubarth Empire.."

In truth, Ves had no idea where the gem cat originally emerged. The young man merely name-dropped the notorious first-rate superstate in order to impress the deputy director. While Linden possessed enough self-control to keep his expression polite, a discrete bump from Lucky surreptitiously informed Ves of the man's excitement.

After a minute of enjoying their tea, they finally decided to talk shop.

"I've been hearing a lot about you from Calsie lately." Linden gestured at the young woman sitting next to Ves. "She informed me that you have expressed interest in forging a closer relationship with the Initiative for Pioneering. While we welcome each and every citizen from Cloudy Curtain, I'd like to hear your own motivations for seeking us out."

Ves already prepared an answer. "My mech business is about to enter a rapid growth trajectory. The amount of credits and publicity that my business is about to generate can lead to an irrational response. I recently realized the importance of paying attention to politics. Compared to the hostile attitudes of the White Doves and the Greens, the Pioneers are the only people in town that doesn't treat businessmen like scum."

"I understand where you are coming from, Ves. While Cloudy Curtain might appear to be a sleepy planet where nothing happens, the truth is that the Greens and White Doves are waging a daily war against the people. They are constantly advancing their heartless agendas in the Planetary Assembly."

"They have made their opinions of me very clear. While they have laid low for now, I don't doubt they are cooking something up to make it impossible for me to run my business in my home planet."

Linden nodded and poured another cup of chamomile tea from the pot. "There are signs that the their coalition is about to advance a tax reform bill in the Assembly in order to address the persistent budget deficits. From what we've heard, the bill is proposing to raise taxes on arms manufacturing and heavy industry to up to 50%."

"What?!" Ves almost spilled his tea. "Fifty percent is even higher than Bentheim's rate! The tax hikes won't fill up the holes in the annual budget at all. Instead, it will drive away every entrepreneur with a working brain. Without a healthy presence of business and commerce, Cloudy Curtain will slide further into backwardness."