"Not my miners."
"Then you haven't been paying attention," Olmed replied, more to himself than to Fwan.
Fwan, of course, heard it. "Neither have you."
The last eight months had been challenging. Not like it had been on Kantenan, but enough that Olmed was still watching over his shoulder.
Though he was starting to move forward and was occasionally brought into Phares’s specialty group of miners, who secured the tunnels when they needed extra help.
He guessed that Erzo, who was one of these specialists, had something to do with it, but he wasn’t complaining. It was still work, and occasionally it kept him away from Holok and his circle.
This latest meeting with Miner’s Needs may say something different. The fight the other day had been pretty bad.
Holok managed to hit him in the face with ore, leaving a strong bruise that marred his cheek, making it look black.
Olmed crossed his arms. "Just give me my punishment and be done with it."
"You feel you deserve a punishment?"
No, Olmed thought. I didn’t start the fight. I never do. "I am here. What else would you want?"
"Perhaps I wish to commend you for a well-done job."
Olmed snorted. "This is not my first time before you for... for issues." Olmed wasn't stupid, he knew that he could have a temper. His temper always seemed to go just over the line of what was considered acceptable rage.
At least, that's the best that Olmed knew about why he was always the one who was reprimanded for fury. After a while, one just didn't care anymore, and he used his fury as a weapon, however he'd like.
"You may be fiery, but you are not stupid," Fwan replied. "Your mood is part of your problem."
"I will work on it," Olmed said.
"You say that all the time, and you never do."
"I mean it."
"You do not," Fwan said. "You need to make a major change in your activities to move beyond this fury that boils in you."
"What do you suggest? Brain bleeding?” The process, believed in the past to rectify the mental instabilities of humanoids, usually caused more damage than assistance.
Fwan blinked. "If I thought that reprogramming your brain would work, I'd suggest it. Unfortunately, I think you need a different kind of change."
"What would that be?"
Where was he going? This was highly irregular, whatever it was he was working on.
"You know, as part of mining needs, it is my business to ensure that all the miners feel properly appreciated and get what they need to survive."
Olmed nodded. "I remember that particular speech about if I needed anything to ask when I arrived. Me and all the other new recruits." Not that any of them did. Every place sang songs of caring about their workers, but none of them really did. Stonebroke, being a ship floating around in space, looking for asteroids to mine, refine, and sell the products to the highest bidder, was not bad. Kantenan mining ships were different.
Not better.
Just different.
Only thing that mattered was the job.
It was still about credits.
Credits always trumped the workers.
