Nowhere to Run
The chill that crawled up the girl's spine did not come from the cold this time. Even bolstered by the words and presence of Aaran beside her, Daiya could feel there was something wrong with how the Corpos responded. A look passed between the Keshiri and his snow-white partner, and then over to Yula, before the man seemed to relent. He passed the datapad off to Yula, yet rather than satisfy the girl, the action only served to unsettle her even more.
Her hands itched without anything to do in the moment, though that could just as well have been from the cold. Daiya tried to resist pulling them up against her armpits, trying to look professional. Trying to look, against her better angels, like a Corpo. It made her sick to think of it, and that was hardly the feeling she needed to add today.
Instead, the teen focused on the explanation from the farmhands. For a moment, she truly felt for them, stuck between the needs of their families and the meager rewards from their bosses. The Corpos probably looked like deliverance to them, Daiya just knew all too well how quickly that vision shattered.
It would have been so easy to spare the workers all the hardship by simply shooting the Corpos now.
She was saved from having the chance to pull out her blaster, however, as Yula handed the datapad to the girl. Daiya looked down at the device in her hands, something to do with them at last. They only started itching more as her eyes glazed over, the Corpo jargon might as well have been Gungan for all it made sense to her. Yes, those were words on the screen. She recognized the words, just not everything they meant when all strung together.
Daiya glanced over to Yula for any hint, trying not to look completely helpless. The young shadowrunner had managed to banthachit her way this far, surely she could make it one more step. She looked back at the legalese, reading it again and again to try to make sense of the message. Yula had seen something to make her confident, Daiya felt it somehow just before the woman handed off the datapad to her.
There. Something about durasteel processing. It was the only thing that seemed out of place in a document discussing agricultural property, names, and a bunch of other terms that felt completely out of context.
Daiya looked up, hopeful she had hit upon the right line. She would know in a moment. "You said that AgCorp has promised to help take care of your families," she asked of the outspoken worker. He nodded, and the teen continued, "Did they say how they meant to do that?"
When the laborer looked puzzled, Daiya turned instead to the Keshiri man. She adopted what was hopefully her convincing bureaucrat voice again, "Surely you made the terms clear to our client."
"I believe the contract spells out our generous offer," the Corpo said. An unrepentant line that Daiya promptly interpreted. The Corpos were happy to screw over anyone who couldn't read between the lines, or even understand them as written.
It was difficult for Daiya to keep her composure. Her grip on the datapad tightened, and she wanted to smack the Corpo with it. The stylus Yula had offered to sit in her hair was also a knife, that would have worked just as well. The sleemo before her didn't deserve a quick blaster shot, they needed to hurt. As much and as long as they were willing to inflict the farmhands to.
Daiya forced herself to stay cool, taking her cues from Yula instead. The woman seemed distracted by something else, and Aaran was still focused on the workers, so the teen had to come up with her own solution. She read the line out loud, hoping it would make more sense in a different medium. Especially to her.
"Upon the acquisition of Frostwythe holdings unto AgCorp," Daiya said, trying not to frown at the flowery language or stumble over the words, "all land shall henceforth be subject to zoning for AgCorp durasteel processing facilities and refineries."
Looking up, Daiya finally felt her satisfaction as she watched the expressions on the farmhands and the Corpos shift. Glancing over at the adults, though, made her unsettling feeling turn into an outright bad one.
Someone new was coming, fast and hot and ready to make trouble.
Her hands itched without anything to do in the moment, though that could just as well have been from the cold. Daiya tried to resist pulling them up against her armpits, trying to look professional. Trying to look, against her better angels, like a Corpo. It made her sick to think of it, and that was hardly the feeling she needed to add today.
Instead, the teen focused on the explanation from the farmhands. For a moment, she truly felt for them, stuck between the needs of their families and the meager rewards from their bosses. The Corpos probably looked like deliverance to them, Daiya just knew all too well how quickly that vision shattered.
It would have been so easy to spare the workers all the hardship by simply shooting the Corpos now.
She was saved from having the chance to pull out her blaster, however, as Yula handed the datapad to the girl. Daiya looked down at the device in her hands, something to do with them at last. They only started itching more as her eyes glazed over, the Corpo jargon might as well have been Gungan for all it made sense to her. Yes, those were words on the screen. She recognized the words, just not everything they meant when all strung together.
Daiya glanced over to Yula for any hint, trying not to look completely helpless. The young shadowrunner had managed to banthachit her way this far, surely she could make it one more step. She looked back at the legalese, reading it again and again to try to make sense of the message. Yula had seen something to make her confident, Daiya felt it somehow just before the woman handed off the datapad to her.
There. Something about durasteel processing. It was the only thing that seemed out of place in a document discussing agricultural property, names, and a bunch of other terms that felt completely out of context.
Daiya looked up, hopeful she had hit upon the right line. She would know in a moment. "You said that AgCorp has promised to help take care of your families," she asked of the outspoken worker. He nodded, and the teen continued, "Did they say how they meant to do that?"
When the laborer looked puzzled, Daiya turned instead to the Keshiri man. She adopted what was hopefully her convincing bureaucrat voice again, "Surely you made the terms clear to our client."
"I believe the contract spells out our generous offer," the Corpo said. An unrepentant line that Daiya promptly interpreted. The Corpos were happy to screw over anyone who couldn't read between the lines, or even understand them as written.
It was difficult for Daiya to keep her composure. Her grip on the datapad tightened, and she wanted to smack the Corpo with it. The stylus Yula had offered to sit in her hair was also a knife, that would have worked just as well. The sleemo before her didn't deserve a quick blaster shot, they needed to hurt. As much and as long as they were willing to inflict the farmhands to.
Daiya forced herself to stay cool, taking her cues from Yula instead. The woman seemed distracted by something else, and Aaran was still focused on the workers, so the teen had to come up with her own solution. She read the line out loud, hoping it would make more sense in a different medium. Especially to her.
"Upon the acquisition of Frostwythe holdings unto AgCorp," Daiya said, trying not to frown at the flowery language or stumble over the words, "all land shall henceforth be subject to zoning for AgCorp durasteel processing facilities and refineries."
Looking up, Daiya finally felt her satisfaction as she watched the expressions on the farmhands and the Corpos shift. Glancing over at the adults, though, made her unsettling feeling turn into an outright bad one.
Someone new was coming, fast and hot and ready to make trouble.
