anyway?”
Grandle sweated a moment as if unsure how—or perhaps whether—to answer. “It seems more of a bi-world arrangement these days. You run Tinker’s Island, Rynn commands our forces in Korr.”
Cadmus let his breath vent through clenched teeth. He hated liars, bootlicks, and lackeys. As much as he might wish it otherwise, Grandle was technically correct. It was a sort of correct he had to respect, even if he didn’t like it.
“Fine. We’ll rune the dynamo—just as a contingency!” Cadmus shook a finger for emphasis. “I’ll meet with the carvers once I’ve seen about getting us more copper.”
Cadmus took as few meetings in his office as possible. It was a cluttered place, filled with paperwork that would be collected by his assistants at day’s end whether he looked at it or not. A small stack of important documents set to one side required his attention—contracts, treaties, and the like—but the rest was merely for his perusal. Like a castle’s torture chamber, it was a place for the unpleasant necessities of leadership that a civilized society would have been better off without.
The Mad Tinker perched on the edge of his seat with his elbows on his desk, chin resting on his interwoven fingers. Across the table sat a younger man, hale and full of vigor, trying to slink below the tinker’s view. His visitor was the son and trade representative of Mr. Amin Sutz, a shipper whose vessel had just delivered copper ore that Cadmus had been long anticipating.
“Say that again, more slowly, Mr. Sutz. I’m hoping that I may have just misheard you.”
Jaffry Sutz reached a finger inside his collar and tugged it away from his neck. “I’m ... I’m afraid not, Mr. Errol. You see, there’s a new wing being built for the Kheshi royal palace, and they want it out of copper, to match the rest.”
Cadmus pounded a fist on the table, causing Jaffry to flinch. “Rot them! I’m paying five times what it’s worth as it is. You can’t tell me they outbid me.”
“My father made the commitment before your order. He had his trade license in Khesh to think of.”
“You get that ship sent here instead of Khesh and I’ll make sure you won’t need to deal with them anymore. I can keep you in coin ‘til the end of days.”
“I’m sure my father wouldn’t like to see his trade with Khesh cut off entirely. He wouldn’t—”
“I’m not talking about your father. I’m talking about you. Mr. Sutz, you strike me as a man being forced to play against weighted dice. If it were up to you, would you sell me the ore, or deliver it to Khesh at a fraction of the price?”
Jaffry stood, straightening himself and smoothing the front of his shirt. “This is my father’s legacy to me. I can’t soil the family name on a single deal, especially one with this importance to the Kheshi royal family.”
Cadmus swiveled in his chair and faced the window. He could see the harbor below, where his copper ore was being unloaded from the Kimba’s Pride . It would be the last ore to arrive at Tinker’s Island for over a month, and unless he acquired a substantial supply soon, production would have to be suspended. Copper was the cheapest and most widespread conductor on Korr, and Kezudkan had procured it in vast amounts for the first world-ripper machine’s construction.
But Kezudkan had fallen on hard times. Copper was the cheapest reasonable conductor, not the only, nor even the best.
He spun his chair back to face Jaffry. The young man had his hands clasped in front of him, fidgeting. “What about silver?”
Jaffry cocked his head and blinked. “Silver, Mr. Errol?”
“Yes, shiny stuff, prone to tarnishing, used in tea sets, tableware, and hundred-fonn coins. Your father deals in all manner of ore. Does he have any silver?”
“Well, yes, I suppose. How much are you talking about?”
“Same as the copper. Silver’s heavier by about fifty percent, but the same volume would do.”
Jaffry’s mouth
Grandle sweated a moment as if unsure how—or perhaps whether—to answer. “It seems more of a bi-world arrangement these days. You run Tinker’s Island, Rynn commands our forces in Korr.”
Cadmus let his breath vent through clenched teeth. He hated liars, bootlicks, and lackeys. As much as he might wish it otherwise, Grandle was technically correct. It was a sort of correct he had to respect, even if he didn’t like it.
“Fine. We’ll rune the dynamo—just as a contingency!” Cadmus shook a finger for emphasis. “I’ll meet with the carvers once I’ve seen about getting us more copper.”
Cadmus took as few meetings in his office as possible. It was a cluttered place, filled with paperwork that would be collected by his assistants at day’s end whether he looked at it or not. A small stack of important documents set to one side required his attention—contracts, treaties, and the like—but the rest was merely for his perusal. Like a castle’s torture chamber, it was a place for the unpleasant necessities of leadership that a civilized society would have been better off without.
The Mad Tinker perched on the edge of his seat with his elbows on his desk, chin resting on his interwoven fingers. Across the table sat a younger man, hale and full of vigor, trying to slink below the tinker’s view. His visitor was the son and trade representative of Mr. Amin Sutz, a shipper whose vessel had just delivered copper ore that Cadmus had been long anticipating.
“Say that again, more slowly, Mr. Sutz. I’m hoping that I may have just misheard you.”
Jaffry Sutz reached a finger inside his collar and tugged it away from his neck. “I’m ... I’m afraid not, Mr. Errol. You see, there’s a new wing being built for the Kheshi royal palace, and they want it out of copper, to match the rest.”
Cadmus pounded a fist on the table, causing Jaffry to flinch. “Rot them! I’m paying five times what it’s worth as it is. You can’t tell me they outbid me.”
“My father made the commitment before your order. He had his trade license in Khesh to think of.”
“You get that ship sent here instead of Khesh and I’ll make sure you won’t need to deal with them anymore. I can keep you in coin ‘til the end of days.”
“I’m sure my father wouldn’t like to see his trade with Khesh cut off entirely. He wouldn’t—”
“I’m not talking about your father. I’m talking about you. Mr. Sutz, you strike me as a man being forced to play against weighted dice. If it were up to you, would you sell me the ore, or deliver it to Khesh at a fraction of the price?”
Jaffry stood, straightening himself and smoothing the front of his shirt. “This is my father’s legacy to me. I can’t soil the family name on a single deal, especially one with this importance to the Kheshi royal family.”
Cadmus swiveled in his chair and faced the window. He could see the harbor below, where his copper ore was being unloaded from the Kimba’s Pride . It would be the last ore to arrive at Tinker’s Island for over a month, and unless he acquired a substantial supply soon, production would have to be suspended. Copper was the cheapest and most widespread conductor on Korr, and Kezudkan had procured it in vast amounts for the first world-ripper machine’s construction.
But Kezudkan had fallen on hard times. Copper was the cheapest reasonable conductor, not the only, nor even the best.
He spun his chair back to face Jaffry. The young man had his hands clasped in front of him, fidgeting. “What about silver?”
Jaffry cocked his head and blinked. “Silver, Mr. Errol?”
“Yes, shiny stuff, prone to tarnishing, used in tea sets, tableware, and hundred-fonn coins. Your father deals in all manner of ore. Does he have any silver?”
“Well, yes, I suppose. How much are you talking about?”
“Same as the copper. Silver’s heavier by about fifty percent, but the same volume would do.”
Jaffry’s mouth
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