A Critical Meeting

[Kazinsal]

Harold smiled. Even without Escher being physically present, it was still possible to play "good cop bad cop" and let the Commission be the bad cop.

"I believe that will work," he said. "Officially, the Nightmare's 'title' so to speak will be transferred to you as salvage, on the condition that you are responsible for its recovery and repairs, and that the ship will be able to assist in the defense of Natio assets if called upon. I will make the necessary arrangements to get an Aquila account manager assigned to you; they'll mark you down as an Octavarium-aligned mercenary company on the paperwork. You'll probably get a minor repairs contract along with the systems overhaul, which will be good if you get into any scraps in the neighbourhood and need a few holes plugged. Anything approaching 'reactor breach' will likely need to be serviced elsewhere; we barely have the room in Aquila's mobile docking facilities to service our own warships, frankly."

"The Commission will need to authorize the release of any electronic warfare assets, but Aquila should be able to make the arrangements with the Commission directly for that. We don't just give the good stuff to anyone with a questionably-sourced tub of cash, so there are a few hoops for most buyers to jump through, and that's the big one. Aquila will be able to produce standard open-market weapons and reinforcement grades for you as well. Anything exotic, they can install, but you're on your own for finding them."

He coughed after swallowing the unexpectedly-bitter dregs of his beer. The last part of the puzzle was the most complex one, in his mind.

"Crayter is my department. I'll ensure the good word reaches their ears in a timely manner. And if they need some help hearing it, well... we'll burn that bridge when we get to it."