Birch: Juniper! There’s been a cave-in at Juniper Mining — no relation — and I can’t get ahold of Annie! I know we’re not technically married yet, but I need some spousal-emergency time off!
Juniper: You stay right here, Birch. That site is about to become total chaos. And I’m sure they aren’t prepared to feed and shelter a crowd of terrified loved ones — not to mention press.
There’s going to be an organized relief effort, and they’ll need security. Let’s have Thorn try to get you assigned to that, okay?
Elisa: Manager! There’s been a cave-in at a Ceanska mine, where my father was consulting, and I can’t reach him! I know I can’t afford a vacation, but . . .
Ludolf: You stay right here, Elisa. You’re right. You can’t afford it.
I’m sure your father will rent you for a visit — assuming he survives. Dinner hour is almost over, and the dishes will need cleaning. Get back to that.
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8 Comments
Wow, Manager Ludolf is all heart.
Elisa is a serf (or whatever the official Sonska term is for it) but her father is a consultant who could hypothetically afford to rent her for a visit? Is this dichotomy the result of some past family catastrophe, or do all Sonska citizens below a certain economic level start out as/serve some set period of years as serfs?
It’s entirely possible the family fell on hard times, forcing Elisa to go into such a position to make sure the family didn’t fully go into debt. So, once more, fuck Sonheim.
What a difference. Holy crud. Plenty of that dichotomy in this very country, too.
Yeah. This is VERY MUCH a Good Boss/Bad Boss moment.
And, once again everyone is making Ludolf out to be some kind of monster.
Maybe I’m a weirdo, but when my dad was dying of brain cancer having work was what saved my sanity. I didn’t like that it took me away from my father in his final days, but I needed out of end of life care clinic he was staying in.
I absolutely understand that feeling- I survived my grandfather’s recent passing in much the same way.
But if we disregard what each individual’s preferred coping mechanism happens to be- your employer gave you access to the things you needed to cope with your situation. Elisa’s employer is being asked to do the same, and refusing.
Wait. “Assuming he survives”… so what happens if he doesn’t survive? Does she get this same speech again (without the half-assed reassurance) when she asks to attend the funeral?
The way this whole indenture thing works seems both cruel and yet also bizarrely inefficient and counterproductive, so A++ observation for realistic worldbuilding I guess 🙁 (Seriously, I love the worldbuilding, but some bits keep getting lovelier and some keep getting more depressing.)
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