Come work for me

Cha'Rolette found Gerald sitting on a grassy hill above the ziggurat, next to a sign that said, 'Please do not throw rocks into the pond' in standard. Cadbury lay curled in his lap, snoring happily.

"I take it you spoke with the high priest."

Gerald tossed a rock into the pond, scattering the fish. "Yup."

Her eyes flashed for a moment. "And I take it he quoted to you the eleventh scroll, third stanza, which states that charity cannot be tainted by its source. That no matter who gives it, a gift to help others must be accepted. By making the temple more welcoming and accessible to the common folk, you increase the opportunities to give, increase the donations given, and increase the number of people helped."

Gerald was impressed. "You've read the scrolls."

She nodded.

"When?"

"Just now."

"But how did... oh, right."

He threw another rock in the pond. "I don't think I'm ever going to get used to that."

She came to a rest alongside him and sneezed daintily into her handkerchief, causing a nearby rock to zip off into the distance.

"You okay?"

She waved her hand. "Just a little sniffle. Look, Gerald, I know it bothers you that you can't link to Central, but you need to know that it's all just data. It doesn't do a thing for you if you don't know how to apply it, and that wisdom comes from experience, same as always."

"Well, tell that to the banks. No one will hire a person who can't link to Central. You know that" said Gerald.

"Yes, I know that. I just want you to know that it doesn't mean you can't make a difference."

She got real quiet for a moment. "You might laugh at me, but I think you're one of the wisest people I'd ever met. Everyone else just restates things they have downloaded. You observe, you process, you understand. You have a wisdom I have never seen before."

He looked at her, surprised.

"...outside of the people in my family, of course."

"Of course. The Ssykes family employs only the wisest and brightest," he quoted.

"Ah, so you finally realized what our family crest stands for."

"Yeah, it's taking a while, but I'm starting to get the hang of standard." He threw another rock, then leaned back against the sign.

She chuckled. "Yep, you're practically fluent."

Gerald liked it when she was like this. When they were alone, she acted like herself, instead of putting on the mask of the duchess. Or at least, that is what he assumed was happening. It was perfectly possible that this was the act and the duchess was the real Cha'Rolette, but this felt right, so this is what he trusted.

Cha'Rolette sneezed again into her handkerchief so loudly this time that one of the tree-sized mushrooms nearby exploded into a fleshy mess.

Gerald brushed some smoldering bits off of his shoulder. "Are you really sure you are okay?"

"It's fine, nothing dangerous."

"Yeah, but what if I had been standing where that mushroom had been?

She put her handkerchief away and shrugged. "I dunno."

Gerald's eyes went wide. "All righty, then." He took a moment to pet Cadbury, then threw another rock into the pond. "The thing is, the high priest knew the scriptures so well I couldn't even argue with him. Everything fit the letter of the law, but it broke entirely the spirit of the law. Do you know what he said? He actually defended the two percent thing."

"Did he really?"

"Yeah, he said that just by the act of giving to the poor, the giver generated so much goodwill and good kharma that the use of those funds paled in comparison. That it didn't actually matter how the money was used, only that it was given."

Cha'Rolette grabbed her knees and leaned back, surprisingly casual for her. "Yes, Kharma. That little balancing act we all play with the universe so that we don't get reborn as a slug or something like that."

"Trust me, there are worse things" said Gerald.

"Look, I know this must be hard for you. I mean, it's not every day you find out that your religion is just a big lie."

"My faith is not a big lie," replied Gerald.

"You're right, that was a poor choice of words."

"No, the choice of words was fine, it is the sentiment I disagree with. My religion is a path between me and the enlightened ones. It doesn't involve anyone else. It's completely personal, and very intimate, and it is not altered by the way other people behave."

"What do you mean?" asked Cha'Rolette.

"I mean that it wouldn't even matter if all the other followers of Soeck were hypocrites. It wouldn't change anything. My faith has nothing to do with them. The only thing that matters is whether or not I personally live up to it."

She looked at him deeply. "You really do believe, don't you?"

"Of course I do. Why does that seem to surprise everyone?"

She tucked a ringlet behind her ear. "Well, because for us, it's just a numbers game. You make sure you do a certain minimum amount of good to avoid punishment. It's like a tax, or a retirement fund if you like. Just something to pay and then forget about until the time comes."

Gerald shook his head. "No, I refuse to believe that goodness is just something to put on a scale and pay out. The universe just can't work that way."

Cha'Rolette sighed. "I wish I could tell you it didn't."

Suddenly something occurred to her. She looked around, her ta'atu waving about, as if to make sure they were alone.

"Look, Gerald, there's something I've been meaning to tell you."

He tilted his head. "What is it?"

She moved to speak, but then fidgeted for a moment. "This is kind of difficult for me. It's usually pretty easy for me to speak my mind..."

She bit her lip bashfully and blushed. Gerald had to fight the urge to smile for fear that she might take it as mockery. There was something so delightfully charming about her when she was being a little bit timid.

"I..."

She caught herself and had to try again.

"I..."

Her lovely jade eyes strained, as if she wanted him to simply understand without words, then she backed off, looking sad, as if she were ashamed of herself.

"...I wanted to offer you a job."

Gerald was so surprised he nearly laughed out loud.

"I'm quite serious. The work you have done at the orphanage and at the new missions has been great P.R. for Ssykes. The whisper campaign in particular has been extremely effective. All our data drives show public opinion up ten points since you started. Why not come and work for us as our Regional Public Charity Relations Manger?"

"You made that title up" scoffed Gerald.

"Of course I did, but think about it, you said yourself a person without a link is unemployable. Well, here I am, offering you a job."

"You can't expect me to work for the company that makes True Life," Gerald insisted.

"Why not? It's basically the same job you do already. Instead of doing charity P.R. work for a greedy corporation masquerading as a religion, you'd be doing charity P.R. work for a greedy corporation that doesn't pretend to be anything but a greedy corporation."

"I don't do it for Soeckism. I do it for them—the people who need it. For those kids."

Cha'Rolette smiled at him affectionately. Her adoring eyes made his heart skip a beat. "I know you do. And believe it or not, that is a valuable skill. People today are cynical and jaded. They see right through a false smile. You, on the other hand, are sincere, and that is priceless when it comes to P.R. work."

Gerald struggled immensely with this line of reasoning. "I'll admit you make a persuasive argument."

"I am a Ssykes, after all. If you work for us, you'll be doing the same job you do now. You can even keep attending the Academy and volunteering at the missions. The only difference will be that you will have the resources behind you to help so many more people than before."

Gerald began to relent just a little. "It is important to help more people..."

As soon as she realized that he might accept, something occurred to her and she suddenly backed off. "But... you know, you don't have to. I mean, it's okay if you say no."

"Actually, what you say makes perfect sense. I mean, charity is charity, regardless of the source, right?" asked Gerald.

"Yes, but this is a big decision. I mean, you probably want to take time to think about it."

He looked at her oddly. "You were pushing so hard, why are you trying to talk me out of it?"

She twisted her fingers nervously. "No reason."

Gerald raised an eyebrow. "But despite all that, despite how much sense it makes, I don't think I could live with myself. It just wouldn't feel right. I'm sorry, but I cannot accept."

"Okay," she agreed quickly, obviously relieved.

He couldn't figure out why she was acting so strangely.

There was a chime as her communicator went off.

"Ugh. I'm sorry, I have to take this."

"I understand."

She walked a few paces away, and he watched her change right before his eyes. Her back straightened, her eyes became harsh; she seemed to radiate power and authority again.

"Vinny, please tell me this is not yet another complaint from your branch family."

"I'm sorry Duchess, but this couldn't wait. The Cortels want to increase their take, and they're threatening to go to the Karzini family to get it if they have to."

Cha'Rolette glanced over her shoulder for a moment and then got even colder. "That wasn't funny Vinny."

"Funny?"

"Yes, your little joke just now. You know we never joke about the five families on an open channel, it's... disrespectful."

The color drained out of his face when he realized what he had done. "Oh my kren... um, I'm sorry, you're right. That was just a joke, and it wasn't funny."

"Let me set up a private line."

Cha'Rolette pulled a cable out of the communicator on her wrist and plugged it into the back of her neck.

As she stood there, Gerald watched her intently. He wondered if he had detected a twinge of guilt in her voice earlier. He wondered why that would have been, and what it would mean, but his brain offered no explanation.