“No one trusts a Dalgurian, unless they want something.”
“What makes you think I want something?” the foreman asked before sniffing with his enormous nose.
“Everyone wants something.”
2
Couldn’t this meeting have just been an email? Jenny wondered to herself, sipping on her coffee that did not contain nearly enough caffeine to get her through this.
So far, it had been nothing but the usual protocols and general practices, updating on the latest techniques and safety regulations that they, here at Oakwood Pharmaceuticals, had in place.
“Seriously what is this?” Joy Schaefer whispered to Jenny at the meeting. “None of this is new information.”
Jenny nodded and fluffed her hair around her face. Partially to block her eyes from being seen, when they she closed them. The movement also kept her somewhat awake. Or at least fidgeting. “This would be the perfect time for a hologram, you know,” she whispered back.
“No kidding. Maybe the aliens will help us out with that.”
Jenny smiled. “That would be nice.”
“You ladies have something to add?” Emilio Lopez asked from the front of the room.
Jenny and Joy shifted in their seats, Joy sinking down a bit.
“Just wondering if the aliens have any new tech that we’re going to bring into our workflow,” Jenny said.
Mostly true, anyway.
“As a matter of fact, they are part of the reason I am having this meeting.”
Jenny perked up.
As did Joy and several others in the meeting.
“As most of you know, the universe has gotten a whole lot bigger in the last few years, as we see out the windows every day.” Emilio gestured to The Bridge, barely visible through the conference room window. “We, here at Oakwood, want to facilitate as much of that growth as possible.”
“Are we, uh, going to work with the aliens?” Another employee asked from the other side of the room.
“We are in discussions to work with the government programs, and see if we can get representatives to The Bridge to foster?—”
“So we’re going to be sending people to that thing?” Joy asked.
“Only if approved,” Emilio replied. “And only those who have excellent scorecards with the company.”
There was a shift in the room, the mood turning.
Of course, it was about the scorecards. Everything with Oakwood was about the company scorecards.
“Whelp, I’m out,” Joy muttered.
She wasn’t the only person who said such a thing, either. Around the room, quite a few people looked dejected, since their personal scorecards were not in the top percentages of the company.
Murmurs immediately started, and Emilio tried to get everyone in the room to listen further, but the frustration dominated the conversations.
“What about you?” Joy asked.
Jenny shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t look at it.”
Joy blinked. “You don’t?”
