{"data":{"id":13074,"title":"A Human Perspective - Episode 1 - Roberts Space Industries","rsi_url":"https:\/\/robertsspaceindustries.com\/comm-link\/spectrum-dispatch\/13074-A-Human-Perspective-Episode-1","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-links\/13074","api_public_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/comm-links\/13074","channel":"Spectrum Dispatch","category":"Lore","series":"A Human Perspective","images":[{"id":29099,"name":"HumanPerspFI_Clean.jpg","rsi_url":"https:\/\/robertsspaceindustries.com\/media\/cmjxxjf2qh8uzr\/source\/HumanPerspFI_Clean.jpg","alt":"","size":3441449,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","last_modified":"2013-07-18T18:33:50+00:00","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/29099","similar_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/29099\/similar"}],"images_count":3,"translations":{"en_EN":"Charl Grissom reluctantly clicked up his ship\u2019s navcomp. He scrolled aimlessly through its star charts for awhile, eyes only half-focused, watching the colorful lights dance on the screen more than really paying any attention to the actual navigational data.\n\n\u201cIt would be nice if I could just stay here in Banu space,\u201d he told his ship, and not for the first time. The Reacher \u2014 his one constant companion \u2014 was a small Banu freighter; the closest Human equivalent would be a Freelancer, he supposed. Charl had blown the last of his army pension credits on her, years ago, and then only made the barest modifications to the alien craft to better accommodate his Human physiology. He had laughed when he first piloted the Reacher out of space dock, and the Banu refit crew joined him \u2014 well, Banu don\u2019t exactly laugh so much as spit and tremble \u2014 because he knew it wouldn\u2019t be at all comfortable for most Humans. But it suited Charl just fine.\n\n\u201cLet\u2019s check the old credit balance,\u201d he said, feigning optimism. \u201cMaybe someone died and left me a fortune.\u201d But when he drew up his account balance there was no change, as he knew there wouldn\u2019t be. He was broke \u2014 in the red, actually, since he\u2019d borrowed up to the account\u2019s limit, too. No money for more provisions, and none for more fuel. If he didn\u2019t jump soon he\u2019d be stranded here on the fringes of Banu space.\n\n\u201cWould that be so bad?\u201d he pondered aloud. The alternative was a return to imperial space, Human contracts, Human interaction, maybe even begging work from his uncles\u2019 consortium \u2026 which he had successfully avoided for over four years. Currently, he had the Reacher in deep orbit in the Banu system of Geddon, but still just close enough to the system\u2019s only inhabited world to keep a tenuous comm link.\n\nHe avoided the navcomp\u2019s glare from the far side of his pilot\u2019s board. When he finally looked and saw where he had absent-mindedly stopped scrolling the star maps, his mood soured further.\n\n\u201cOrion system. Of course.\u201d Home, back in UEE space \u2026 physically his home, but not emotionally. Those thousand memories everyone has of their childhood? Charl\u2019s were all in the Orion system. Dad bailing on them on Armitage. Then the Vanduul raiders ravaging their home, not once, but twice. Mom and both sisters lost. Nothing in his memories left any binding ties to home.\n\nCharl fidgeted in the pilot\u2019s chair a while longer, busying himself with this and that, uselessly lamenting his lack of funds and recent work. Finally, he unbuckled and floated back toward his stateroom \u2014 he\u2019d hoped keeping the ship\u2019s grav plates turned off might buy him a couple of extra days of energy \u2014 then velcroed into his bunk. He drifted off to sleep hoping for a miracle.\n\nHis miracle appeared as he slept, in the form of a new message in his CommRelay\u2019s inbox.\n\n\u201cGreat,\u201d he moaned. \u201cWho else do I owe money to?\u201d He touched the screen for more data.\n\n\u201cLyshtuu!\u201d Charl held his breath and let a cautious hope wash over him. He carefully touched the screen for playback, grimacing as if it might reach out and slap his face.\n\nLyshtuu\u2019s strange but familiar visage appeared on the screen. When was the last time the Banu trader had gotten in touch with him? Two standard years? More than that? He had changed very little; why would he, since Banu are effectively immortal.\n\n\u201cCharl-Grissom,\u201d Lyshtuu began, his non-Human mouth parts struggling to form Human words. Banu and Humans were similar, but different enough that their speech had an otherworldly quality. But Charl had the practiced ear to understand it. He had always liked Lyshtuu particularly, though he always said Charl\u2019s full name as if it was one long word.\n\n\u201cCharl-Grissom, your acquaintance is requested. It is my request that your acquaintance be made for another time. That is, again. I am requesting a renewed acquaintance with Charl-Grissom.\u201d Charl caught his meaning. The Banu language tended to be quicker than most Human tongues, so Lyshtuu tended to hurry along despite Charl\u2019s suggestion that he just slow it all down a beat.\n\n\u201cCharl-Grissom, an acquaintance renewal is desirable to me, Lyshtuu, an acquaintance \u2026\u201d he continued and Charl shook his head.\n\n\u201cOkay, old buddy, let\u2019s get to the point here,\u201d he said, fast forwarding. \u201cIs there any money involved?\u201d That was the other bad thing about Banu speech. Compared to Human speech patterns, Banu speech was really formal, even ceremonial, so it took them a long time to get to the point. Face to face, Charl would prompt Lyshtuu to just say what he meant, but since this was a recorded message he could only hit the fast forward button a few times and keep his eye out for a characteristic gesture.\n\n\u201cOh, there it is!\u201d he stopped and backed the message up a bit.\n\n\u201c\u2026 together for profit \u2026\u201d That was the key line. Banu always got serious when they started talking about profit.\n\n\u201cYes!\u201d Lyshtuu had a job for him. A paying job. Charl tossed his head back and enjoyed his first carefree breath in many standard months, and let the recorded message play on.\n\n\u201c \u2026 together for profit will be this new acquaintance, mutual profit for services in the new acquaintance \u2026 \u201c\n\nCharl sat up straighter, brushing crumbs out of his scroungy beard and smoothing out his smelly t-shirt, even though no one could see him. He would need to shave. For whatever reason, Banu don\u2019t trust anyone whose mouth they could not see. There would be plenty of time for that. He sped through the message to pick up the highlights.\n\n\u201c\u2026 partial mutual profit arranged with third party financial acquaintance \u2026\u201d\n\nThere would be an advance. Great, he needed one.\n\n\u201c\u2026 new acquaintance in kind with previous mutual for profit acquaintances \u2026 renew again Torreele Foodstuffs acquaintance \u2026\u201d\n\nThis job would be much like previous jobs. Charl had done other work through Lyshtuu for Torreele Foodstuffs, a Human corporation that imported Banu goods into UEE space. Unlike most Human corps, they had even established a significant presence in Banu territory. Easy jobs. They paid well and never bugged him while he worked.\n\n\u201c\u2026 full nature of new acquaintance to be shared at coordinates provided \u2026\u201d\n\nHe\u2019d get the skinny in a face-to-face meeting, which was typical. Banu like to watch you closely when you talk. They pick up on each other\u2019s attitudes visually, and even though a Human face reveals less to them it still makes them more comfortable. Fine.\n\n\u201cOh, Lyshtuu, you beautiful Banu bastard, you\u2019ve really saved my can!\u201d Charl swung into action. He would have to reply to affirm his acceptance and secure the advance credits, which should be no problem from right here in Geddon. Then he could provision up, get the thrust coupler looked at \u2014 that thing had been acting up for awhile. He smacked the grav control with a lusty \u201cHah!\u201d and welcomed the luxurious return of his own weight sinking into his chair.\n\n\u201cYou know what this means, don\u2019t you?\u201d he asked of the Reacher. \u201cNo heading back to UEE space. No begging my useless-ass uncles for work!\u201d\n\nCharl quick-stepped through the ship, readying systems and stowing items. A quick trip to Geddon\u2019s orbital and he could be on his way. He was smiling so hard his face hurt. He clicked the navcomp back on and scrolled joyfully out of the Human systems and back into the systems of the Banu Protectorate.\n\n\u201cOkay, baby,\u201d he said, nudging the Reacher\u2019s thrusters to life. \u201cLet\u2019s get rolling!\u201d\n\nTo Be Continued \u2026","de_DE":"Charl Grissom klickte widerwillig den Navcomp seines Schiffes an. Er scrollte eine Weile ziellos durch die Sternenkarten, die Augen nur halb fokussiert, und beobachtete die bunten Lichter, die auf dem Bildschirm tanzten, mehr als dass er den eigentlichen Navigationsdaten wirklich Aufmerksamkeit schenkte.\n\n\"Es w\u00e4re sch\u00f6n, wenn ich einfach hier im Banu-Raum bleiben k\u00f6nnte\", sagte er zu seinem Schiff, und das nicht zum ersten Mal. Die Reacher - sein einziger st\u00e4ndiger Begleiter - war ein kleiner Banu-Frachter; das n\u00e4chste menschliche \u00c4quivalent w\u00e4re ein Freelancer, vermutete er. Charl hatte vor Jahren das letzte Guthaben seiner Armeepension f\u00fcr sie verpulvert und dann nur die geringsten Modifikationen an dem au\u00dferirdischen Schiff vorgenommen, um es besser an seine menschliche Physiologie anzupassen. Er hatte gelacht, als er die Reacher zum ersten Mal aus dem Raumdock steuerte und die Banu-Mannschaft sich ihm anschloss - nun ja, Banu lachen nicht wirklich, sondern spucken und zittern - weil er wusste, dass es f\u00fcr die meisten Menschen \u00fcberhaupt nicht bequem war. Aber f\u00fcr Charl war es genau richtig.\n\n\"Schauen wir uns das alte Guthaben an\", sagte er und heuchelte Optimismus. \"Vielleicht ist jemand gestorben und hat mir ein Verm\u00f6gen hinterlassen.\" Aber als er seinen Kontostand abrief, gab es keine Ver\u00e4nderung, wie er wusste. Er war pleite - eigentlich sogar in den roten Zahlen, denn er hatte auch das Kontolimit ausgesch\u00f6pft. Kein Geld f\u00fcr weitere Vorr\u00e4te und auch nicht f\u00fcr mehr Treibstoff. Wenn er nicht bald sprang, w\u00fcrde er hier am Rande des Banu-Raums gestrandet sein.\n\n\"W\u00e4re das so schlimm?\", \u00fcberlegte er laut. Die Alternative war eine R\u00fcckkehr in den imperialen Raum, menschliche Vertr\u00e4ge, menschliche Interaktion, vielleicht sogar das Erbetteln von Arbeit beim Konsortium seines Onkels ... was er seit \u00fcber vier Jahren erfolgreich vermieden hatte. Zurzeit befand sich die Reacher in einer tiefen Umlaufbahn im Banu-System von Geddon, aber immer noch nahe genug an der einzigen bewohnten Welt des Systems, um eine schwache Kommunikationsverbindung aufrechtzuerhalten.\n\nEr wich dem Blick des Navcomp von der anderen Seite seines Pilotenbretts aus. Als er schlie\u00dflich sah, wo er geistesabwesend aufgeh\u00f6rt hatte, die Sternenkarten durchzubl\u00e4ttern, verschlechterte sich seine Laune weiter.\n\n\"Orion-System. Nat\u00fcrlich.\" Zuhause, zur\u00fcck im UEE-Raum ... physisch sein Zuhause, aber nicht emotional. Diese tausend Erinnerungen, die jeder an seine Kindheit hat? Die von Charl waren alle im Orion-System. Vater lie\u00df sie auf Armitage im Stich. Dann verw\u00fcsteten die Vanduul-Raider ihre Heimat, nicht nur einmal, sondern zweimal. Mutter und beide Schwestern verloren. In seinen Erinnerungen gab es keine verbindlichen Bindungen zur Heimat.\n\nCharl zappelte noch eine Weile im Pilotensessel herum, besch\u00e4ftigte sich mit diesem und jenem und beklagte sinnloserweise seinen Mangel an Geldmitteln und Arbeit. Schlie\u00dflich schnallte er sich ab und schwebte zur\u00fcck in seine Kabine - er hatte gehofft, durch das Ausschalten der Gravitationsplatten des Schiffes ein paar zus\u00e4tzliche Tage Energie zu gewinnen - und legte sich in seine Koje. Er driftete in den Schlaf und hoffte auf ein Wunder.\n\nDieses Wunder erschien, als er schlief, in Form einer neuen Nachricht im Posteingang seines CommRelais.\n\n\"Gro\u00dfartig\", st\u00f6hnte er. \"Wem schulde ich noch Geld?\" Er ber\u00fchrte den Bildschirm, um weitere Daten zu erhalten.\n\n\"Lyshtuu!\" Charl hielt den Atem an und lie\u00df sich von einer vorsichtigen Hoffnung \u00fcbermannen. Vorsichtig ber\u00fchrte er den Bildschirm f\u00fcr die Wiedergabe und schnitt eine Grimasse, als ob er ihm eine Ohrfeige geben wollte.\n\nLyshtuus seltsames, aber vertrautes Gesicht erschien auf dem Bildschirm. Wann hatte sich der Banu-H\u00e4ndler das letzte Mal bei ihm gemeldet? Vor zwei Jahren? Mehr als das? Er hatte sich kaum ver\u00e4ndert. Warum sollte er auch, denn Banu sind praktisch unsterblich.\n\n\"Charl-Grissom\", begann Lyshtuu, wobei seine nicht-menschlichen Mundwerkzeuge M\u00fche hatten, menschliche Worte zu bilden. Banu und Menschen waren sich zwar \u00e4hnlich, aber doch so verschieden, dass ihre Sprache eine jenseitige Qualit\u00e4t hatte. Aber Charl hatte das ge\u00fcbte Ohr, um sie zu verstehen. Er hatte Lyshtuu schon immer besonders gemocht, auch wenn er Charls vollen Namen immer so aussprach, als w\u00e4re er ein einziges langes Wort.\n\n\"Charl-Grissom, Ihre Bekanntschaft ist erw\u00fcnscht. Ich bitte Sie, Ihre Bekanntschaft ein andermal zu machen. Das hei\u00dft, wieder. Ich bitte um eine erneute Bekanntschaft mit Charl-Grissom.\" Charl verstand, was er meinte. Die Banu-Sprache war schneller als die meisten menschlichen Sprachen, so dass Lyshtuu dazu neigte, sich zu beeilen, obwohl Charl vorschlug, das Ganze ein wenig zu verlangsamen.\n\n\"Charl-Grissom, eine Erneuerung der Bekanntschaft ist f\u00fcr mich w\u00fcnschenswert, Lyshtuu, eine Bekanntschaft ...\", fuhr er fort und Charl sch\u00fcttelte den Kopf.\n\n\"Okay, alter Kumpel, lassen Sie uns zum Punkt kommen\", sagte er und spulte vor. \"Ist da Geld im Spiel?\" Das war der andere Nachteil der Banu-Sprache. Im Vergleich zu den menschlichen Sprachmustern war die Banu-Sprache sehr f\u00f6rmlich, sogar zeremoniell, so dass sie lange brauchten, um auf den Punkt zu kommen. Von Angesicht zu Angesicht w\u00fcrde Charl Lyshtuu auffordern, einfach zu sagen, was er meinte, aber da dies eine aufgezeichnete Nachricht war, konnte er nur ein paar Mal auf die Vorspultaste dr\u00fccken und nach einer charakteristischen Geste Ausschau halten.\n\n\"Oh, da ist es!\" Er hielt an und spulte die Nachricht ein wenig zur\u00fcck.\n\n\"... zusammen f\u00fcr den Profit ...\" Das war der entscheidende Satz. Banu wurde immer ernst, wenn sie anfingen, \u00fcber Profit zu sprechen.\n\n\"Ja!\" Lyshtuu hatte einen Job f\u00fcr ihn. Einen bezahlten Job. Charl warf den Kopf zur\u00fcck und genoss seinen ersten sorglosen Atemzug seit vielen Monaten und lie\u00df die aufgezeichnete Nachricht weiterlaufen.\n\n\" ... zusammen f\u00fcr Gewinn wird diese neue Bekanntschaft sein, gegenseitiger Gewinn f\u00fcr Dienste in der neuen Bekanntschaft ...\"\n\nCharl setzte sich aufrecht hin, b\u00fcrstete die Kr\u00fcmel aus seinem sch\u00e4bigen Bart und strich sein stinkendes T-Shirt glatt, auch wenn ihn niemand sehen konnte. Er w\u00fcrde sich rasieren m\u00fcssen. Aus welchem Grund auch immer, Banu traute niemandem, dessen Mund sie nicht sehen konnte. Daf\u00fcr w\u00fcrde er noch genug Zeit haben. Er \u00fcberflog die Nachricht, um die Highlights zu sehen.\n\n\"... teilweiser gegenseitiger Gewinn mit dritter Finanzbekanntschaft vereinbart ...\"\n\nEs w\u00fcrde einen Vorschuss geben. Gro\u00dfartig, er brauchte einen.\n\n\"... neue Bekanntschaft in Naturalien mit fr\u00fcheren gegenseitigen gewinnbringenden Bekanntschaften ... erneuern Sie die Bekanntschaft mit Torreele Foodstuffs ...\"\n\nDieser Job w\u00fcrde \u00e4hnlich sein wie fr\u00fchere Jobs. Charl hatte \u00fcber Lyshtuu schon andere Auftr\u00e4ge f\u00fcr Torreele Foodstuffs erledigt, ein menschliches Unternehmen, das Banu-Waren in den UEE-Raum importierte. Im Gegensatz zu den meisten menschlichen Konzernen hatten sie sogar eine bedeutende Pr\u00e4senz im Banu-Gebiet aufgebaut. Einfache Jobs. Sie wurden gut bezahlt und nervten ihn nie, wenn er arbeitete.\n\n\"... die vollst\u00e4ndige Art der neuen Bekanntschaft wird bei den angegebenen Koordinaten mitgeteilt...\"\n\nBei einem pers\u00f6nlichen Treffen w\u00fcrde er alles erfahren, was typisch f\u00fcr ihn war. Banu beobachten Sie gerne genau, wenn Sie reden. Sie nehmen die Haltung des anderen visuell auf, und auch wenn ein menschliches Gesicht ihnen weniger verr\u00e4t, f\u00fchlen sie sich dennoch wohler. Gut.\n\n\"Oh, Lyshtuu, du sch\u00f6ner Banu-Bastard, du hast mir wirklich die Dose gerettet!\" Charl setzte sich in Bewegung. Er w\u00fcrde antworten m\u00fcssen, um sein Einverst\u00e4ndnis zu bekr\u00e4ftigen und sich den Vorschuss zu sichern, was von hier in Geddon aus kein Problem sein sollte. Dann konnte er sich versorgen und die Schubkupplung \u00fcberpr\u00fcfen lassen - das Ding machte schon eine ganze Weile Probleme. Mit einem lustvollen \"Hah!\" schlug er auf die Gravitationskontrolle und begr\u00fc\u00dfte die luxuri\u00f6se R\u00fcckkehr seines eigenen Gewichts, als er in seinen Stuhl sank.\n\n\"Sie wissen, was das bedeutet, nicht wahr?\", fragte er den Reacher. \"Kein Weg zur\u00fcck in den UEE-Raum. Kein Betteln bei meinen nichtsnutzigen Onkeln um Arbeit!\"\n\nCharl ging mit schnellen Schritten durch das Schiff, bereitete die Systeme vor und verstaute Gegenst\u00e4nde. Ein kurzer Abstecher zu Geddons Orbital und er konnte sich auf den Weg machen. Er l\u00e4chelte so sehr, dass sein Gesicht schmerzte. Er schaltete den Navcomp wieder ein und scrollte freudig aus den menschlichen Systemen zur\u00fcck in die Systeme des Banu-Protektorats.\n\n\"Okay, Baby\", sagte er und stupste die Schubd\u00fcsen der Reacher zum Leben an. \"Lass uns loslegen!\"\n\nFortsetzung folgt ...","zh_CN":"Charl Grissom reluctantly clicked up his ship\u2019s navcomp. He scrolled aimlessly through its star charts for awhile, eyes only half-focused, watching the colorful lights dance on the screen more than really paying any attention to the actual navigational data.\n\n\u201cIt would be nice if I could just stay here in Banu space,\u201d he told his ship, and not for the first time. The Reacher \u2014 his one constant companion \u2014 was a small Banu freighter; the closest Human equivalent would be a Freelancer, he supposed. Charl had blown the last of his army pension credits on her, years ago, and then only made the barest modifications to the alien craft to better accommodate his Human physiology. He had laughed when he first piloted the Reacher out of space dock, and the Banu refit crew joined him \u2014 well, Banu don\u2019t exactly laugh so much as spit and tremble \u2014 because he knew it wouldn\u2019t be at all comfortable for most Humans. But it suited Charl just fine.\n\n\u201cLet\u2019s check the old credit balance,\u201d he said, feigning optimism. \u201cMaybe someone died and left me a fortune.\u201d But when he drew up his account balance there was no change, as he knew there wouldn\u2019t be. He was broke \u2014 in the red, actually, since he\u2019d borrowed up to the account\u2019s limit, too. No money for more provisions, and none for more fuel. If he didn\u2019t jump soon he\u2019d be stranded here on the fringes of Banu space.\n\n\u201cWould that be so bad?\u201d he pondered aloud. The alternative was a return to imperial space, Human contracts, Human interaction, maybe even begging work from his uncles\u2019 consortium \u2026 which he had successfully avoided for over four years. Currently, he had the Reacher in deep orbit in the Banu system of Geddon, but still just close enough to the system\u2019s only inhabited world to keep a tenuous comm link.\n\nHe avoided the navcomp\u2019s glare from the far side of his pilot\u2019s board. When he finally looked and saw where he had absent-mindedly stopped scrolling the star maps, his mood soured further.\n\n\u201cOrion system. Of course.\u201d Home, back in UEE space \u2026 physically his home, but not emotionally. Those thousand memories everyone has of their childhood? Charl\u2019s were all in the Orion system. Dad bailing on them on Armitage. Then the Vanduul raiders ravaging their home, not once, but twice. Mom and both sisters lost. Nothing in his memories left any binding ties to home.\n\nCharl fidgeted in the pilot\u2019s chair a while longer, busying himself with this and that, uselessly lamenting his lack of funds and recent work. Finally, he unbuckled and floated back toward his stateroom \u2014 he\u2019d hoped keeping the ship\u2019s grav plates turned off might buy him a couple of extra days of energy \u2014 then velcroed into his bunk. He drifted off to sleep hoping for a miracle.\n\nHis miracle appeared as he slept, in the form of a new message in his CommRelay\u2019s inbox.\n\n\u201cGreat,\u201d he moaned. \u201cWho else do I owe money to?\u201d He touched the screen for more data.\n\n\u201cLyshtuu!\u201d Charl held his breath and let a cautious hope wash over him. He carefully touched the screen for playback, grimacing as if it might reach out and slap his face.\n\nLyshtuu\u2019s strange but familiar visage appeared on the screen. When was the last time the Banu trader had gotten in touch with him? Two standard years? More than that? He had changed very little; why would he, since Banu are effectively immortal.\n\n\u201cCharl-Grissom,\u201d Lyshtuu began, his non-Human mouth parts struggling to form Human words. Banu and Humans were similar, but different enough that their speech had an otherworldly quality. But Charl had the practiced ear to understand it. He had always liked Lyshtuu particularly, though he always said Charl\u2019s full name as if it was one long word.\n\n\u201cCharl-Grissom, your acquaintance is requested. It is my request that your acquaintance be made for another time. That is, again. I am requesting a renewed acquaintance with Charl-Grissom.\u201d Charl caught his meaning. The Banu language tended to be quicker than most Human tongues, so Lyshtuu tended to hurry along despite Charl\u2019s suggestion that he just slow it all down a beat.\n\n\u201cCharl-Grissom, an acquaintance renewal is desirable to me, Lyshtuu, an acquaintance \u2026\u201d he continued and Charl shook his head.\n\n\u201cOkay, old buddy, let\u2019s get to the point here,\u201d he said, fast forwarding. \u201cIs there any money involved?\u201d That was the other bad thing about Banu speech. Compared to Human speech patterns, Banu speech was really formal, even ceremonial, so it took them a long time to get to the point. Face to face, Charl would prompt Lyshtuu to just say what he meant, but since this was a recorded message he could only hit the fast forward button a few times and keep his eye out for a characteristic gesture.\n\n\u201cOh, there it is!\u201d he stopped and backed the message up a bit.\n\n\u201c\u2026 together for profit \u2026\u201d That was the key line. Banu always got serious when they started talking about profit.\n\n\u201cYes!\u201d Lyshtuu had a job for him. A paying job. Charl tossed his head back and enjoyed his first carefree breath in many standard months, and let the recorded message play on.\n\n\u201c \u2026 together for profit will be this new acquaintance, mutual profit for services in the new acquaintance \u2026 \u201c\n\nCharl sat up straighter, brushing crumbs out of his scroungy beard and smoothing out his smelly t-shirt, even though no one could see him. He would need to shave. For whatever reason, Banu don\u2019t trust anyone whose mouth they could not see. There would be plenty of time for that. He sped through the message to pick up the highlights.\n\n\u201c\u2026 partial mutual profit arranged with third party financial acquaintance \u2026\u201d\n\nThere would be an advance. Great, he needed one.\n\n\u201c\u2026 new acquaintance in kind with previous mutual for profit acquaintances \u2026 renew again Torreele Foodstuffs acquaintance \u2026\u201d\n\nThis job would be much like previous jobs. Charl had done other work through Lyshtuu for Torreele Foodstuffs, a Human corporation that imported Banu goods into UEE space. Unlike most Human corps, they had even established a significant presence in Banu territory. Easy jobs. They paid well and never bugged him while he worked.\n\n\u201c\u2026 full nature of new acquaintance to be shared at coordinates provided \u2026\u201d\n\nHe\u2019d get the skinny in a face-to-face meeting, which was typical. Banu like to watch you closely when you talk. They pick up on each other\u2019s attitudes visually, and even though a Human face reveals less to them it still makes them more comfortable. Fine.\n\n\u201cOh, Lyshtuu, you beautiful Banu bastard, you\u2019ve really saved my can!\u201d Charl swung into action. He would have to reply to affirm his acceptance and secure the advance credits, which should be no problem from right here in Geddon. Then he could provision up, get the thrust coupler looked at \u2014 that thing had been acting up for awhile. He smacked the grav control with a lusty \u201cHah!\u201d and welcomed the luxurious return of his own weight sinking into his chair.\n\n\u201cYou know what this means, don\u2019t you?\u201d he asked of the Reacher. \u201cNo heading back to UEE space. No begging my useless-ass uncles for work!\u201d\n\nCharl quick-stepped through the ship, readying systems and stowing items. A quick trip to Geddon\u2019s orbital and he could be on his way. He was smiling so hard his face hurt. He clicked the navcomp back on and scrolled joyfully out of the Human systems and back into the systems of the Banu Protectorate.\n\n\u201cOkay, baby,\u201d he said, nudging the Reacher\u2019s thrusters to life. \u201cLet\u2019s get rolling!\u201d\n\nTo Be Continued \u2026"},"links_count":12,"comment_count":22,"created_at":"2013-06-28T00:00:00+00:00","created_at_human":"12 years ago"},"meta":{"processed_at":"2026-05-08 23:07:42","valid_relations":["images","links"],"prev_id":13073,"next_id":13075}}