Read Online Quarter Share: A Trader's Tale from the Golden Age of the Solar Clipper by Nathan Lowell - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Nathan Lowell
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Duchamp .”
“But if you grew up on ships, how could you have been fooled into the scrubber?”
Pip looked embarrassed. “I was playing the part of a wide-eyed innocent. I didn’t want them to know I was an indie brat So, I pretended I’d never been on a ship before. The scrubber thing got out of hand, but I couldn’t get out of it without letting on that I was playing with them.”
“What tangled webs we weave…” I quoted.
“Something like that.”
“So being an indie brat isn’t a good thing?”
“Not to professional spacers. There’s a bias and it can get pretty ugly, so don’t bring it up, okay?”
“But you’re a professional spacer now.”
“Right. Some professional. I’m still on quarter share after more than a full stanyer.”
“Well, if you picked a specialty…”
“But which one? I really don’t like environmental, and I just don’t have the chops for engineering. I’m an analyst, not an engineer. I’ve tried the cargo exam, but I just can’t seem to pass it.”
“Why not cook? You seem to do well with the inventory and accounting.”
“True.”
“I’m pretty sure Cookie would help. He likes ya and the two of you seem to work well in the galley.”
He nodded. “But I don’t know much about cooking. I didn’t even know how to make decent coffee.” He cast me an evil glance out of the corner of his eye.
“Bah, just look at it like a trade problem. Recipes are easy to come by and cooking is just imagination and technique. You’ve got plenty of imagination and the technique will come if you practice. Running the mess is more about getting the best food for the budget and that’s what trading is, isn’t it?”
I saw in his eyes that something clicked. I could practically hear the gears turning. “You know? That might work.” He smiled at me. “For a greenie, you’re darn clever.”
I smiled back. “Just trying to do what I can. You’ve been helping me so much the least I can do is repay the favor.”
“Well, this might be the answer I needed, Ish, thanks again.” He paused for a moment. “Dangle’s knees, I need to unwind a bit. Maybe get in a little workout and then have a nice sauna before sack time. Let’s head down to the gym.”
“The gym?” I didn’t know whether to hug him or hit him. “Are you telling me that after all this time, you didn’t tell me this ship has a gym?”
Chapter 7
Neris System
2351-September-16
You would think that I’d be observant enough to realize that all the passages I walked past, through, and around each day on my way to and from the mess deck should lead somewhere. Truthfully, I always felt just a bit lost on the ship. When I didn’t have a guide like Pip, I stayed on the paths I knew.
The gym occupied most of the deck directly under the crew berthing. Compared to the areas of the ship I’d seen, it was huge. The overhead was twice as high, and my spatial sense told me that we occupied an area almost as large as the galley, mess deck, and berthing areas combined. I looked at Pip incredulously. “Is this normal?”
“What?”
“This!” I waved my hands. “All this space. Man, I thought we used every cubic meter for cargo. We’re living in a cracker box up there but down here, it’s so spacious. What gives?”
Pip chuckled. “Oh, not all the ships have a gym this big, but Federated freighters over forty kilotons do. We’re lucky that way. Even the smaller ships have some kind of exercise facility. It helps if the crew can blow of excess energy on long trips. Otherwise the walls really start to close in.”
“Ya think?” I punched him playfully in the arm. “What else haven’t you told me?”
“I’m sorry I don’t get what you mean,” He playfully laughed while rubbing his shoulder.
“Oh yes, you do. What else about this ship don’t I know about? First, it was the view from the bridge, Now this. What else is there? A holo theater and a zoo maybe?”
“I’m sorry. I just thought
“But if you grew up on ships, how could you have been fooled into the scrubber?”
Pip looked embarrassed. “I was playing the part of a wide-eyed innocent. I didn’t want them to know I was an indie brat So, I pretended I’d never been on a ship before. The scrubber thing got out of hand, but I couldn’t get out of it without letting on that I was playing with them.”
“What tangled webs we weave…” I quoted.
“Something like that.”
“So being an indie brat isn’t a good thing?”
“Not to professional spacers. There’s a bias and it can get pretty ugly, so don’t bring it up, okay?”
“But you’re a professional spacer now.”
“Right. Some professional. I’m still on quarter share after more than a full stanyer.”
“Well, if you picked a specialty…”
“But which one? I really don’t like environmental, and I just don’t have the chops for engineering. I’m an analyst, not an engineer. I’ve tried the cargo exam, but I just can’t seem to pass it.”
“Why not cook? You seem to do well with the inventory and accounting.”
“True.”
“I’m pretty sure Cookie would help. He likes ya and the two of you seem to work well in the galley.”
He nodded. “But I don’t know much about cooking. I didn’t even know how to make decent coffee.” He cast me an evil glance out of the corner of his eye.
“Bah, just look at it like a trade problem. Recipes are easy to come by and cooking is just imagination and technique. You’ve got plenty of imagination and the technique will come if you practice. Running the mess is more about getting the best food for the budget and that’s what trading is, isn’t it?”
I saw in his eyes that something clicked. I could practically hear the gears turning. “You know? That might work.” He smiled at me. “For a greenie, you’re darn clever.”
I smiled back. “Just trying to do what I can. You’ve been helping me so much the least I can do is repay the favor.”
“Well, this might be the answer I needed, Ish, thanks again.” He paused for a moment. “Dangle’s knees, I need to unwind a bit. Maybe get in a little workout and then have a nice sauna before sack time. Let’s head down to the gym.”
“The gym?” I didn’t know whether to hug him or hit him. “Are you telling me that after all this time, you didn’t tell me this ship has a gym?”
Chapter 7
Neris System
2351-September-16
You would think that I’d be observant enough to realize that all the passages I walked past, through, and around each day on my way to and from the mess deck should lead somewhere. Truthfully, I always felt just a bit lost on the ship. When I didn’t have a guide like Pip, I stayed on the paths I knew.
The gym occupied most of the deck directly under the crew berthing. Compared to the areas of the ship I’d seen, it was huge. The overhead was twice as high, and my spatial sense told me that we occupied an area almost as large as the galley, mess deck, and berthing areas combined. I looked at Pip incredulously. “Is this normal?”
“What?”
“This!” I waved my hands. “All this space. Man, I thought we used every cubic meter for cargo. We’re living in a cracker box up there but down here, it’s so spacious. What gives?”
Pip chuckled. “Oh, not all the ships have a gym this big, but Federated freighters over forty kilotons do. We’re lucky that way. Even the smaller ships have some kind of exercise facility. It helps if the crew can blow of excess energy on long trips. Otherwise the walls really start to close in.”
“Ya think?” I punched him playfully in the arm. “What else haven’t you told me?”
“I’m sorry I don’t get what you mean,” He playfully laughed while rubbing his shoulder.
“Oh yes, you do. What else about this ship don’t I know about? First, it was the view from the bridge, Now this. What else is there? A holo theater and a zoo maybe?”
“I’m sorry. I just thought
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