My name is Jonathan Seabourne and I am captain of the OS&C liner Breezewood. Until recently, five of my crew were guests of your organization while we negotiated a payment for trespassing through your space. I am pleased we were able to resolve the incident without bloodshed, and I thank you for treating my men well.
The vessel I made contact with, NK|Okuninushi, suggested I make contact with you to prevent future misunderstandings. I am sure there is some agreement we can come to that allows for Orbital Spa and Cruise to continue its operations while still respecting the sovereignty of your space. With this unfortunate incident behind us, we may even be able to entertain the possibility of a more mutually beneficial partnership.
Regards,
Jonathan Seabourne
Captain, OS&C|Breezewood
Director, White Spa Lines Division
Signal Loss: Average Encryption Type: Symmetric Key Sender ID: S-sha_01 Recipient ID: WSL_012 Location: Unspecified
Subject: RE: Passage through Kusari.
Captain-san.
My men repoted that the exchange occured witout any incidents. You followed our instructions flawlessly. Also, it looks like no authorities, or any thind party really, was involved in... how did you call it? Our misunderstanding?
It almost seems like you can be trusted, Gaijin. I'm intrigued. Let's put that trust to a test test, shall we? You want a deal? Here is it. It's simple, really.
10%.
10% of your profts, whenever any ship of your company passes trough our territory. If it's passing empty, a humble sum of 1,000,000 credits will suffice. Credits to be sent to Neural Net account with the following ID: NK|Chozei.Hito. We have given you an encryption key. You will establish a secure channel where you will report any passages made, and paid credits. This deal stays just between us.
Should you agree, I'll make sure your assets are protected from any further ... misunderstandings. Betray us, and you are a free game again.
Your terms are agreeable. However, I did want to clarify a few conditions. First, I wanted to clarify that I only speak for the Breezewood, not for OS&C overall. Our agreement, and protections, only cover my ship. If I find this agreement profitable, I would of course be willing to speak favorably to such proposals you may strike with other captains.
Secondly, obviously, is that this understanding is discrete. The prices you ask are no worse than what we actively pay when pirated, but the KSP would have more concerns over a proactive arrangement than the, shall we say, ad-hoc hold ups that occur. To that end, it would simplify the book keeping on our end if the money were transferred the old fashioned way, as it were. I am sure we can make arrangements for one of your fighters to intercept the Breezewood at which point the desired funds will be transferred. I can keep track of what would be... owed on my end.
Next, it is my understanding that such arrangements also come with obligations on both sides. I am sure you realize that if the routes through Kusari become unprofitable, the corporation will simply stop running those routes. We can afford to be pirated once on these journeys. If we have to pay to you and to other criminal elements, then we are left with no choice than to find other, safer journeys. I hope that if other Kusari elements become problematic for Breezewood, I could count on the Nouka to ensure that other more dishonorable elements do not cut in on your funding.
Lastly, you seem to be miscalibrated when it comes to the profitability of these routes. The Breezewood has 3000 units of cargo space dedicated to carrying passengers. The rest are for crew, supplies, and amenities. Our most profitable route at the moment would be transporting passengers to Renzu shipyards. That journey produces $2858 credits profit per passenger for a total profit of $8,574,000. Your expected cut of 10% would amount to $857,400 per journey. Given that you expected us to pay $1,000,000 for an empty transport, I wanted to ensure that you weren't expecting our full passenger runs to generate approximately $1 million per journey as well. In my experiences, men of business seldom like being surprised at shortfalls, and I wanted to temper your expectations.
So, I propose 10% of profits for each of my journeys through Kusari space, to be stockpiled and delivered by periodic arranged stick-up. This also allows our passengers to experience some "real" piracy and give grand accounts for Wanderlust magazine. This also comes with the understanding of Breezewood being able to reach out to the Nouka if other Kusari elements threaten the profitability of our routes. It is my hope that this will allow all of us to prosper.
Regards,
Jonathan Seabourne
Captain, OS&C|Breezewood
Director, White Spa Lines Division
Signal Loss: Average Encryption Type: Symmetric Key Sender ID: S-sha_01 Recipient ID: WSL_012 Location: Unspecified
Subject: RE:RE:RE: Passage through Kusari.
Konbawa, Seabourne-san.
I was not aware you were contacting us personally, that.. *The speaker can be heard lighting up a cigarette* that changes everything. I must admit I'm somewhat disappointed, but still interested. I can perfectly understand your position, as long as you can understand mine.
*The speaker paused, and exhalled*
Miscalibration was caused by that misunderstanding. I was not aware it's just the safety of Breezewood we were talking about. Let's try again, shall we?
Ten percent will stay. We will not force you to pay for an empty ship, however. Trust me, captain, scarring your profits away is the least thing I would want to see happening. ... Should you find yourself in that unfortunate position, where your ship is generating pure operating costs, just contact us. Believe it or not, in our line of buisness, we also have to move goods from time to time. Take your time to think about it...
Now, the obligations. Yes, this is precisely what we expected, and are ready to offer. No fool will scratch the hull of your lovely boat. The channel will remain open for you, should you ran into any trouble. Also, like i have said earlier, this arrangement stays just between us, you have my word for that... Only us. Remember that. We will make sure that the warmongers of the Reformed Empire will not cause you any trouble.
Lastly, I'm afraid you will have to try a little harder to convince me to change the form for payment of your obligations. You see I am, just as you, testing the waters here. Seite-wa koto-o shisonjiru. The whole point of that arrangement is to see weather you will keep to your words without a gun aiming at your head. If reports are too much of a hassle, I can let this fly, but the credits will have to roll trough the Neural Net. Safely, of course. Should you prove a reliable client, we will negotiate a better deal, and offer more ... sophisticated services.
Surely a Kusari can appreciate that every organization has its protocols, protocols that are in place for a reason can can't be altered for convenience by those on the front lines. Breezewood's main budget is under tight scrutiny from corporate to combat embezzlement and criminal behavior by our captains. The only time I have sufficient discretion with funds is when the ship is under direct threat. If your organization cannot muster a single fighter to make the occasional pickup, perhaps there is less to fear from upsetting your forces than I first thought.
I will keep a running tab of the 10% profits from routes running through Kusari. The next time I see one of your men, I will transfer the accrued funds so that one meet up has the potential to transfer several million in "owed" credits. But the amounts you are talking about require a face to face meeting, there simply is no way around that detail.
I will send a one-time transfer of $1 million to the address as a token of good will and to hopefully build up the trust between our two parties. As for the rest, you know how to reach us to arrange a pick-up. If that agreement is not to your liking, there is sufficient pressure in OS&C to abandon Kusari interests entirely that altering Breezewood's itinerary would not raise any eyebrows. As my fellow Libertonians would say: take it or leave it.
A petty pirate flashes a torpedo launcher and asks for wire transfers. An organization builds relationships and understandings for mutual benefit. Which one are you?
Regards,
Jonathan Seabourne
Captain, OS&C|Breezewood
Director, White Spa Lines Division
Signal Loss: Average Encryption Type: Symmetric Key Sender ID: S-sha_01 Recipient ID: WSL_012 Location: Unspecified
Subject: RE:RE:RE:RE:RE Passage through Kusari.
Captain,
Don't get too cocky with your hard questions, as I have my own set. A man is not afraid to do what's right, a corporate fiend hides behind rules and regulations. Which one are you, eh? Worry not, I know the answer, both os uf are kinda... both, aren't we? To be fair, I'm just suprised by the ammount of red tape you still have your hands tied with on a position of a bloody director. That's the hellish world you have created for yourselves, and now you have to live it I guess.
Allright, I'll let it be. You're still a man of your word after all, and I can confirm that the transfer of a good will buck got here safely. I'll send somebody from time to time to collect your dues.
The title of "Director" is a pleasantry, at the end of the day I still consider myself a captain first and foremost. I am glad we managed to make this work out, and I hope for a mutally benefial, and more amicable, relationship going forward between two men who better understand the realities of each others' position.
As a wise woman once said, "His position gives him power but it also limits him. There is only so much he can do before he violates his station."
Regards,
Jonathan Seabourne
Captain, OS&C|Breezewood
Director, White Spa Lines Division