BoTH Chpt 20

==Blood on the Horizon - Chapter 20 -==
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===Customs===
"Work on your angles for next time," Erika sighed as she unstrapped herself, the Messenger touching down on the spaceport's runway. "That shudder worried me for a minute."
 
"She's a tough girl," I patted the console in front of me. "But I'm not planning on being the one flying next time. I've only ever used Jumpships, so this was a new thing for me."
 
"Probably a sound idea," Erika gave me a thumbs up and staggered out of the cockpit. "Now, you'll probably want some sort of sunglasses. Real sunlight is a lot different from what you've been used to for the past few years.
 
"Got 'em right here," I held up the pair that was stuffed into a pocket. "I think I'll change out of the suit though, something more casual seems like it might be the better option."
 
"Might want to take a shower too," Erika nodded. "But you're going to want to deal with Customs and the docks first. Otherwise, you'll be paying fines."
 
"Okay," I nodded, showing her the way to the small personnel ramp. "Let's get this sorted out."
 
"I take it you're the owner of this ship, here?" A man in a pair of grease-stained overalls and an old cowboy hat stepped forward and shook my hand.
 
"Yessir," I met his eyes. "Is there something I can help you with?"
 
"Aye, I'm Mitchel Brown, the local inspector. Your docking fees have already been covered by Comstar's local Precentor. But you'll still have to declare your manifest. We're mostly an agricultural world around here, so any plants'll have to be inspected by one of our people."
 
"Had an issue before, I take it?" I asked as my eyebrows shot up.
 
"All say," he chuckled. "Had a merchant a few years back accidentally bring over an invasive weed. It's got a pretty flower, so some poor fool bought it for his girl, 'for the end of the month we had to start actively exterminating the damned thing. We just managed it last year, and we're not eager to have a repeat."
 
"Well," I laughed. "I don't got any produce, been subsisting off of MREs for a while, and not the good ones."
 
"I know what you mean," He accepted the manifest. "Looks like you've got quite a bit of machinery here," he nodded to himself. "Might have some local farmers or industrial types that'll be looking to trade you for 'em."
 
"Gotta get some stuff straightened out with Comstar first, Mr. Brown."
 
"Well, I'll let y'all get on your way," the man tipped his hat and walked off. "Just gimme a holler if you need anything, now."
 
"Will do," I turned and walked back into the dropship. "Erika, I'm gonna take a shower and get changed, you can go head on to whatever business you had. I'll meet you back at the dropship in a week or so to discuss what plans I have before heading on out."
 
"Sounds good to me," Erika walked down the ramp with a jaunty wave.
 
"Mitchel, you old dog!" She greeted the inspector. "I thought you'd retired years ago…"
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===Introductions===
"I'm Mark Hull," I woke up the guard at the HPG station from where he was snoring away. "I was asked to speak with your Precentor Winfrey."
 
"What?!" The man started awake, his sidearm nearly falling out of his holster as he stood up rapidly. "Oh," he looked at me for a minute as his brain turned over. "You got an appointment?"
 
"I'm not actually sure," I shrugged, keeping my opinion on his readiness to myself. "Your Precentor asked to meet with me."
 
"Let me check in with the guys inside," he reached for a radio, "No funny business now, I've got my eyes on you."
 
"If I'd wanted to try something, it would have been while you were snoring," I muttered under my breath.
 
"Alright, you can head on in," the man waved me through. "Follow the signs or ask someone for help if you get lost. But don't go wandering, understand?"
 
"I think I can figure it out," I walked through the now-open gate, and made my way through the small garden that was spaced between the main complex and the outer walls.
 
"Mr. Hull?" a robed woman asked, a clipboard in hand as I injured the main doors.
 
"Yes, ma'am," I replied. "That's me."
 
"Follow me, please," She turned, her gray robes shifting and concealing her figure. "The Precentor has been eager to speak with you for most of the week."
 
"I'm not that important," I chuckled. "I'm just lucky where others weren't."
 
"Speaking of which," she stopped and turned to face me. "I'm the one who has been tasked with assisting you with reclaiming the accounts that you have access to. Once you have finished speaking with Precentor Winfrey, we will begin going over the process that is required before you can utilize the assets that you 'technically' have access to."
 
"Thank you," I smiled. "I'm glad that something worked out in the fucking mess that is my life."
 
"I wouldn't count on that yet," She laughed. "You haven't seen the paperwork you have to fill out yet."
 
"Fair enough," I walked through the door she indicated.
 
"Precentor, you've got a guest," she knocked on the door.
 
"Oh! He's here!" the man stood up from his desk and shook my hand profusely. "Please, come in and take a seat. Can I get you anything to drink? Oh, the questions I have for you."
 
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"You're a miracle in the world of K-F theory," Winfrey grinned as he pulled out an old faded notebook. "Now, please start telling me your story. I'm hoping that even a layman such as yourself may have bserved something that will change the world as we know it."
 
"Well, it all started when…" Mark began
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===Task of Paperwork Begins===
 
"You alright?" The woman met me at the door of the office. "Sorry about him, he's not normally so energetic."
 
"It's fine," I smiled and stretched. "The man seems very eager to explore science, I almost feel bad for him. Chained here to a desk instead of doing research."
 
"Most of us are here at this station because we made someone on Terra mad," she led me to her own office. "The border between the Suns and the Concordat isn't exactly a dream posting."
 
"I bet," I chuckled as I sipped at my water bottle. "Now, you said something about paperwork, Miss?"
 
"Rose," she responded. "And I already have your name, Mr. Hull as well as the account numbers that you provided me with. In order to access them, I'm going to need a bit more than that though. These accounts were absorbed by Comstar after the fall of the Terran Hegemony, and while we've kept decent records, there are still some steps that we have to go through for accounts that have been mostly inactive aside from the automatic investments that had been started before the Succession Wars started."
 
"Well, Miss Rose, just tell me what I need to fill out and we'll get started," I sighed. "I'd rather get all of this stuff out of the way now than later when I'm in a rush to do something."
 
"We're going to be here a while," the Acolyte replied. "I'll order a pizza or something."
 
"That would be great," I began looking at the stack set before me. "Just a plain pepperoni or something, I'm not sure I can handle more than that at the moment. It's been a while."
 
"I'll get that called in while you look through the fine print," Rose nodded. "I'll be back in a few moments."
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Chapter 20