“If they see the Hokki people as desperate,” the negotiator said,
“the Chancel ors wil always consider us children. Even if they lose interest in acenomite, they wil not leave us alone. They have dominated the human race for three thousand years. Nothing angers a Chancel or more than to see arrogant indigos try to survive on their own. Why can the Hokki people not work together to build wealth and prosperity without Chancel or intervention?”
“If we were capable,” Perr said, “we would have done so centuries before now.”
It was his last word on the matter, but Perr did not leave the negotiator without some hope. Using a wel -honed technique, Perr promised to appeal to the boards of Nantou and Hotai to plateau price increases for the next six months and increase production of Kohlna meal by two percent. He assured the visitor this would be achieved with patience and discipline.
Kara saw the twinkle in her father’s eyes: He wasn’t making a concession. The offset in profits would be recovered another way. She wondered which clients would feel the next gut punch.
Sometimes, ten-year-old Kara lingered in the bul abast tree to contemplate what she heard, deciding which of her many questions might be answered when she confronted her brothers later on. Lang and Dae, twelve and thirteen years old, resented her queries, suggesting she was too young to understand complicated matters of the seamasters. Besides, they argued, she’d never stand on the executive board of Nantou when she grew up, so what concern were these issues to her? Leave the future to us, they said.
Only years later did Kara resent their condescension. She also knew much more history and held a firmer grasp of the economics and delicate politics involved. More important, perhaps, she began to appreciate the Freelanders’ ideology as her own interest in the land and environment expanded. She set her sights on a firm role inside Nantou, but not in the business sector.
Three weeks before she turned sixteen in Standard Year 5357, Kara announced over breakfast her life objective: To join Nantou’s Bioresearch and Engineering Division. Perr and Li-Ann shaded suspicious glances, while Lang and Dae rolled their eyes.
“Is this what you think of me?” Kara said to a silent table. She focused her glare on her brothers. “Nantou is our family legacy. Why is my ambition any less acceptable than yours?”
Lang pretended to stab himself in the heart then laughed.
“No one said you couldn’t work for Nantou, but everybody knows you’re best suited for the marketing division.”
“We do?” Dae asked with a touch of snark.
“Enough,” their father said. He took a slow drink from a tal glass of infused mango juice. “Kara, you have never expressed these interests before today. In addition, you placed midway through the first tier on the Science Regimens. Do you realize the alchemy required by al those employed within BRED?”
Here we go, she thought. Time for the family bubblehead to lower her expectations.
“What I know, Honorable Father, is the importance of working to
ensure a better tomorrow for our world. This is the stated mission of BRED. As for my test results, are you as wel -versed in Lang’s Linguistic Appropriations scores? Or Dae’s Integrated Mathematics Regimen? If not, I’m sure they’d be wil ing to shine some light on their mediocrity.”
She spotted her mother’s silent applause when Li-Ann raised her napkin to her lips to conceal an obvious smile of satisfaction.
“Enough, Daughter,” Perr said. “I used the Regimens as an example of a larger trendline. You lack the overal discipline for such work. And for the record, I have already voiced my considerable displeasure to your brothers for their disgraceful outcomes.
However, those skil sets wil not be essential to their success at Nantou. They wil not become accountants or analysts. They wil be training for corporate leadership. You, on the other hand, have time to reconsider your options. I suggest you put aside these notions.”
After breakfast, her father and brothers left the estate in the corporate Scram, joining the UpWay en route from the exclusive Haansu District to the city center. Li-Ann visited Kara in her daughter’s bedroom an hour later, sending away staff. She joined Kara on the balcony and grabbed her daughter’s hand.
“Do not listen to them,” her mother said. “They are testing you, Kara. Of course, they want you to succeed at Nantou.”
“So long as no one confuses me with the true heirs to the Syung-Low dynasty. Right, Mother?”
The grip tightened. “Why must you always be so sarcastic? Our family is old and revered. Are we to apologize for our extended good fortune? Kara, the men in
