"FWLS32" - читать интересную книгу автора (A Future We'd Like to See)

A Future We'd Like To See 1.32 - Profit and Tradition
By Twoflower (Copyright 1993)

Port Hades isn't that bad of a place to live. Heck, I've
lived there and worked there for most of my life. I have quite a
few friends there, and a share in the Port, like the rest of us
honest businessmen there.

Of course, there is the small factor that we're not
technically in Terran space. This is actually very good, because
it makes life easier on us... it's tariff-exempt, tax-free
commerce at its best. Yes, there is the other side effect of a
sort of lawlessness, but if you look at it my way, there are no
laws here -- QED, you can't have lawlessness without laws. Sure,
occasionally people are killed or turn up missing and cargo can
be hijacked and taken lord knows where, but that's just part of
everyday business life here. It's a bit harder, but yields a
higher profit.

I'm a Saren, so profit is always on my mind... I suppose its
bred in the blood, but I try to avoid profitable situations if
they also conflict with my morals. It's not hard to have morals
out here, you just need a different kind of morals. Ripping
someone off is not cool at all, since it's not nice and they can
come back to blast you if they find out. I don't need to worry
about the killing bits, because I operate a bar; the worst that
can happen is failure to pay bar tab, and if the situation gets
too serious, I just consult Edward.

Edward runs the Mercenaries Local right next door. There's
also Nad Quayle and his family down one ring in the Port.
MurfTech has a factory branch out here, where labor is cheaper...
there's also Doc Holiday WAY down the Port, in the Infirmary.
Injured? He'll patch you up good as new. Monk fixes up ships,
not people, but provides an equally important service. There are
also the freelance traders that frequent the port... Ookie
Panookie, Rap Scallion, Johnny Trigger, even that nice girl
Samantha from Port Freedom a sector or two over. And lastly, me,
Emerald, green-clad manager and bartender of the Emerald Saloon.
We're one big happy family.

Like all families, we have traditions. Breakfast, for
instance. I pull out the talking toaster and we all have a light
meal in the morning before going about daily commerce. We've got
traditional table seating arrangements and everything, very
ritualishishish.

"Keep the waffles comin'," Edward murbled through forkfuls
of frozen waffle. I popped a few into the toaster.