The Plan
07 Oct 2016Mara Korine
Mara's head hurt, and the pleasant dream she'd been having faded from her consciousness. Slowly at first but the details were replaced with a foggy, painful sensation until she was aware that she was in fact, awake and hungover. She hadn't bothered to get undressed aside from the minimum required for sleep and she was laying on top of the bed covers. Coffee, the most potent curative elixir ever devised, was desperately lacking in the room. She would have to get some from the cafe she'd spotted up the path from her hotel as soon as she'd cleaned up. The shower felt so soothing that she lingered there, letting the running water relieve the stiffness in her neck for several minutes before getting dressed.Once she was ready to head out she collected the items she'd tossed on the floor the night before. Her bag lay on the floor against the wall. Her shoes littered the hall, one near the bed and one much closer to the door. Bending to pick up each item forced a swelling of her headache and nausea. She tried to count her steps as she walked up the path, but gave up somewhere between twenty and thirty. Can't count, just keep walking. Look the cafe is right there, it's not too much further. Another step, and now another. Mara thought this to herself several times before she finally arrived. She hung her cane on the back of a chair and ordered herself a coffee and a fibrous dish that she wasn't familiar with which on any other morning might not have been so appealing. It looked like a large pancake and had the texture of a muffin mixed with some shredded cabbage-like vegetable. It filled her stomach without upsetting it, and the coffee revived her.
Mara first needed to verify Eddy's claims and investigate the other places of business on the station. That effort showed him to be honest. The Owl Five-Five was being closed for renovations, and the bigger places were really not where business took place. Mara would have to get into Wedges. She had learned about leveraging from her father. He was eager to teach his business strategies to her from quite a young age. First, you assess the target financially and socially. When you have an idea of how much money goes into and out of a business and through which channels, you start to map out those channels. Eventually, you may find one of those channels tributaries is connected to someone you know. And this is how Mara discovered that Wedges was partially owned by Ralleigh Sinje, and that Sinje was on the board of directors with Blanche Fredrec. Ms Fredrec recently invested to great profit on the advice of Mara's father and they are on very favourable terms. It should be possible to get in contact with Fredrec, and so Mara sent a message for her father to contact her at his earliest convenience and to please call on a secure line.
With the plan in place, she started to think about her final problem. She needed to find a polarizer, and it would have to be calibrated. Most of the components could be purchased at the market on the station but she needed a graviton beam emitter, which can be found in frame-shift drives. Mara placed the orders and had everything delivered to a collection station. Eddy at the used shipyard was only too happy to oblige, and after arranging a unit to be picked out Mara headed down to the shipyard.
The shipyard was a 30-minute trip from Mara's hotel and cafe that she was nursing her hangover in. It was only a few tens of metres down the length of the station, but at almost ninety degrees around the circumference. She made her way to the light rail that encircled the interior of the station. It was enough of a walk that she was glad to give her leg a rest when the car arrived. Mara watched the train station recede into the background behind the car and then appear to slide upwards as what was the ground became a wall, and what was wall became the ceiling. It always gave her a funny sensation as her mind attempted to apply concepts of ground, sky, walls, and roof to the interior of one of these places. Mara looked straight up at the buildings across the expansive interior and could see ships taking off from their ports and the smaller buildings nestled among them. She couldn't quite make out individual people, but she imagined them looking back in her direction. It was an imaginary connection, but satisfying. Her daydream was interrupted by an incoming call from her father.
"Hello Dad, How was your trip to Fehu?"
"Hello Mara, the trip was useful. They've overestimated demand and I highly doubt they will even rent three-quarters of the units. We won't be investing in that. What is wrong? Is there something you need to talk about? We don't usually need secure channels for chit chat." The concern in her father's tone was as genuine as it had always been.
"Nothing's wrong Dad. I'm just trying to figure something out and I need your help."
"What's on your mind Mara?" her father inquired.
"Do you remember the business you made with Blanche Fredrec about 4 months back? She had that strange mobile restaurant that would create local dishes wherever they went? I have learned that she is connected with a Mr Ralleigh Sinje. I need to be in Mr Sinje's favour and it's a time sensitive issue. A matter of a day or two at most, or an opportunity will pass by. You taught me that opportunity waits for no plan and I don't have time to make one. If I'm not back out in Tosia within two weeks I will lose my chance to be on the publication and everything I've worked for these last six years will be for nothing. I need to be on that publication, Dad. If I'm not and I have to self-publish it will look like a failure. It will be seen as a desperate cry for attention. There are so many desperate cries for attention in this business. I don't want to have our family name dragged through that opinion and if it comes to it, I would rather find a new career. But I've worked so hard to get this."
Her father took a moment to consider his reply. "Mara, when you were 7 years old I took you on a business trip with me. I thought it would be an opportunity for you to see some of the systems far away from home. You brought your favourite doll at the time on that trip. Do you remember Goldilocks? Every planet we landed on and every station we docked in you insisted on taking her weight. We wrote the measurements down together. I thought the idea was adorable. But when you noticed that her weight on one of the stations was slightly less than the other stations we docked at you didn't accept my answer of ignorance. Planets, you pointed out, could have any weight. But stations were all supposed to be the same. They were controlled so why was this one different? It turned out that the station had been having trouble with their flight computers and it was slowing the station's spin. The slower the station spun, the less gravity was felt from the inside. You had noticed that something was wrong there and though I didn't know until the station's predicament had been made public knowledge, you knew there was something wrong. Your mother, of course, was especially proud of you. Your sister has been gifted with my abilities to network, but you were handed down your mother's analytical mind. So believe me when I say that I understand, and support you. I want nothing more than for you to succeed and bring our family great pride. But I must know exactly why you need me to pull in a favour, and how you expect to use it to your advantage. What is it precisely that you need Mara?"
"I need to hire a pilot. There are no ships out here that suit my needs and won't be until it's too late. I understand after the recommendation from one of the ship's dealers here, and after some research, that most business that isn't handled by the market authority here on the station takes place in a limited number of establishments. Of the two most promising places, both of which would be generously called dives, one is closed for renovations and both require a recommendation for VIP access to their more secure areas. I need VIP access to Wedges. It's a seedy place and it's under thirty percent ownership by Sinje. If your friend Ms Fredrec can speak to him on my behalf, there's no better support that I could hope for."
"Our daughter seeking VIP access to seedy bars? This is why you didn't want the conversation overheard. You were always good at doing your homework, though. You're sure that if I do this, you will succeed?" Her father questioned.
"Yes. I'm certain I can find what I need. I have a contact who can connect me with any pilots who might be willing. I just need to prove that I'm worth their time and that I won't be a liability to them."
"Very well. I will become an acquaintance of this Mr Sinje. I've just been looking him up. In addition to seedy dive bars, he also has some very respectable credentials. He's got a hotel on Duamta up for sale and I think I'll buy it from him. It's only ten lightyears from Sol. Near enough to profit from it. No need to bother our friend Ms Fredrec." Her father sounded almost excited. It wasn't often he made investments so freely and he certainly wouldn't have purely on Mara's behalf.That must be a very attractive offer.
"Thank you so much, Dad! I promise I'll make the most of it."
"My pleasure sweetheart. Be safe alright? I know I don't need to remind you but I can't help myself. I love you! I've got to go now. There's a brunch I'm obligated to and then I'll get to your business."
"I love you too, Dad. Good luck and thank you!"
The remainder of her afternoon was spent building the polarizer. It would be a tabletop-sized device, weighing only a bit more than two kilogrammes. A few hours were spent extracting a tiny beam emitter from fridge-sized wrecked drive she selected and refusing on every occasion to take any more crates of radios. She had it shipped to the collection point and took it and the other components from there to her hotel room where she could assemble the device. The next day she would have to have the beam emitter calibrated with the rest of the assembly, but again Eddy came to the rescue for a modest fee. He called on a certified calibration company which normally certifies his tooling, as well as certain parts in engine and avionics sensors and made an appointment for the next day.
Mara was quite pleased with herself. Recovering from the accident was now showing real progress. The only uncertainty now was whether she could actually charter a ship. The truth was, she was not as certain she'd find one as she'd let on to her father. In fact, she had no idea at all how likely it was that anyone at Wedges would be willing to take on passengers and fly under her direction. That evening after half-past eight, she got an incoming message from Francis Marten. It read, "Please call at this number to confirm your membership, and to discuss expectations."
She called back promptly, and Francis picked up.
"Hello. Who am I speaking to?" He asked.
"Hello. I'm Mara Korine. And you are?"
"I'm Francis and I work at Wedges. Though you knew that didn't you? We can skip most of the formalities as your application came on the recommendation of Mr Sinje. I will need you to sign a form, however. It's just some liability stuff our legal team requires all members to sign off on. When can you drop by?"
"I can be by this evening. How does this work? Can I let you know what I'm looking for and have your guidance?"
"That's exactly how it works Ms Korine. You come to me, and I'll sort you out. How can I help?"
"I need a pilot willing to fly me to the rim and to survey systems in the Tosia sector for at least two weeks."
"Hmm is that all? Do you need to fly under a specific name, or do you have any special cargo that may need accommodation?"
"Fly under a new name? Goodness no, I just can't get out to this sector in a timely fashion without hiring someone's ship. It's a time sensitive issue. I need to be on-site in the next week or two. I have no illicit cargo if that's what you're asking. I do have a sensitive instrument but it's small and I can carry it with me. But I would appreciate someone who can fly fast, but gently."
"I see, alright I'll look into it. Is there anything else or will I see you tonight?"
"I'll be over in a couple of hours. Goodbye and thanks!"
When Mara arrived at Wedges for the second time, the bouncer who previously had worn pinstripes and now donned a polka-dotted suit watched her cross the bar. Again he conferred with his colleague, and this time, his opposite nodded affirmatively. As Mara approached the stairs the now polka-dotted man stood from his seat and unclipped the rope guarding the stairwell to the VIP floor. All was going according to plan, and Mara was feeling quite proud of herself and easily ignored the small knot that was pulling at her stomach from the knowledge that she was entering a place of business for the ill of reputation.
As she walked down the stairwell, she noticed that the panelling was of a premium quality. It could even be actual wood, or at the very least a high-quality synthetic. The stairwell was designed to muffle noise and the thumping and bleating of the music upstairs faded as she turned around the halfway landing. A door at the bottom of the stairwell slid open automatically as she approached and led her into a wide modernly decorated room. The music down here was downtempo and just loud enough to mask the conversations of those around, but not so loud that you have to shout to anyone in your party. The lighting was warm and comfortable and pleasantly diminished. The smokey haze was rarified, but still present. A large circular bar featured in the center of the room. It was all shine, and chrome. Holographic decorations gave it the appearance of floating between an intricate purple and red nebula above and an exaggerated rendition of a neutron star below. The room distorted around Mara as she approached the bar and the imposingly large neutron star in the same way that gravitational lensing occurs around such dense stellar objects. Francis was at the bar polishing its surface. He wore a muted grey garment, fitted to look like a flight suit and decorated with a chrome bow-tie that reflected the holograms around him. He was muscular, fit, and clean shaven. His eyes, only partially obscured by the tinted glasses he wore, told Mara that he was intelligent and experienced. His confidence was absolute. This room and this business were his. They were as much of him as from him and Mara felt intimidated strolling into his domain.
"Mara, thank you for dropping by." He greeted her with a smile.
"Hello. Thank you of course. Your bar is very impressive. It's not what I would have expected after what the upstairs is like. And this display is very convincing."
Francis smiled and placed a tablet in front of Mara, "Do you like it? It makes some people uneasy. Here is the form I need you to fill in."
The form was, for the most part, a waiver and a protection of Wedges from liability of any effects of conversations and acquaintances made at the bar. Mara signed and Francis smiled.
"May your time here prove profitable. Your VIP status will last for 6 months and will need to be renewed at that time, though after being vouched for you simply need to pay the renewal fee of one-hundred-thousand credits." He adjusted his glasses and asked, "Can I get you anything to drink?"
"I'll just have cranberry juice. I'm not feeling well from overdoing it last night."
Francis poured Mara her juice and informed her that he had found her someone who had recently returned from the Tosia sector. "You're quite lucky," he said, "That sector is not well explored. It's a miracle that there's even someone here who'd heard of it. I've asked him to stop by tonight and I've reserved booth 12 for you."
Francis swiped across a control panel behind the bar and the holographic distortions were temporarily suppressed in the direction of an empty booth. Mara thanked Francis again and walked toward the booth. She felt like she was walking through a wormhole. The disorienting distortions spinning and flipping around everywhere but a single portal leading out to the sanity of the barroom floor. She refilled her cranberry juice twice and as her hangover turned into a sleep deprivation headache she seriously considered giving up for the night and heading back to the hotel. She was contemplating this for the third time when she was interrupted.
"Hey, Tosia girl."