Weapons and contracts

When we arrive at the naval weapons merchant, I am surprised to find that it is a very small store. I imagined it would be a large warehouse where weapons could be perused to my heart's content, but that isn't the case.

I guess this is nothing but a showroom; the good stuff must be kept somewhere secure.

'Well then, my gorgeous gunner, you need to be with me for these talks. You are also going to need to learn how to operate the weapons systems, so I imagine they can provide you with instruction on how to do that.'

'I understand, I will pay close attention. Captain!' Her use of the word captain was punctuated with a mischievous wink and a swish of her tail.

I invited her into the crew less than an hour ago, and she is already making an effort to go along with my flirty banter.

We enter the store, and a well-dressed middle-aged gentleman greets me. 'Good afternoon, sir. How can we help you?'

'I am looking to add some weaponry and a valuables safe to my ship. From my memory, I still have the possibility to add a frontal tier 1 linked weapon, and a tier 2 secondary weapon. I am leaning towards rapid-fire mana guns for tier 1, and mana torpedos for tier 2. What do you have?'

'We can provide both of those, sir. Please tell me what dock you are at, and I will send someone to check on it while we speak.'

'Dock 3'

He points at one of the younger guys in the store who is listening to us. The younger guy stands up and sprints out of the store as though he were fleeing from some kind of predator.

'The safe is fairly simple to install. We usually put them in the captain's cabin, and only they would have access. I assume you are the captain, correct?'

'I am, yes. What locking mechanism does it use?'

'Mana recognition. It detects your mana signature and opens or locks tighter depending on who touches it. If you want to, we can record your mana signature today when we take the order or the day of delivery and installation.'

'Installation day would be best. What about price?'

'Prices range from our lowest of 1000 gp to our highest of 10,000 gp. The 10,000 gp version is made from double-reinforced mana steel. It can survive a direct hit from a hard shell medium cannon.'

'The 10,000 gp version suits me best. And the weaponry?'

'Linked rapid-fire mana guns cost 20,000 and have an installation cost of 10,000. The mana torpedoes are based on pods. Each pod contains 9 torpedoes, and each installation should allow 2 pods. So 18 torpedoes total. Each torpedo is 800 gp, each pod is 10,000, and installation is also 10,000 for the two pods.'

'How long does installation usually take?'

'We can have it all done in 4 days if we start tomorrow, we will also include a training manual for any crew that might end up using it.'

'So all in, we are looking at just under 80,000 gp, right? Can I give it to you tomorrow morning when you arrive to start the installation? I don't usually walk around with that much money on my person.'

'That is perfectly fine with us, I will accompany them on the first day to oversee the installation of the safe, so I can take payment then.'

The young man who ran to the docks returns and confirms that what I have asked for is compatible with the ship, and so we agree to start the next day.

With our business concluded and a deal struck, we leave the ship outfitters and make our way to the skyfarer's guild.

Thanks to the innate knowledge I inherited when I almost passed out entering the bridge of my ship, I know that all crew members must be registered with them, and magically enforceable contracts need to be drawn between the captain and crew member.

The contracts can range from very simple to very complicated, and the price of registering a new crew member can vary depending on the complexity of the employment contract.

For all intents and purposes, a properly made contract will protect the lives and privacy of the crew and captain equally. The punishment for breaking the terms of a contract can range from monetary penalties like docking pay to a full-on right to execute the person.

We arrive at the skyfarer's guild, and I am met by the same grumpy attendant as earlier in the day. 

'We don't do refunds. If you've decided to leave already, you can't have your money back.'

I haven't even said anything yet and this rude fuck is already pulling the no refunds card!

'No, I just need to register a new crewmate and get some guidance on standard compensation percentages. My plan is to give her 500 gp monthly, plus a percentage of all spoils. She is joining today and will be a newbie gunner.'

'Alright, in that case, she should probably get 0.5% of the spoils. That number can increase over time as she gains experience and ability. Would you like to make a contract?'

We draw up the contract to include a few clauses that I imagine will be necessary in the future.

1. Neither party can volunteer private information about the person or profession of a crew member without permission.

2. The captain will provide room, board, and all daily essentials to the crewmate whenever possible. The crewmate will receive a monthly stipend of 500 gp, plus 0.5% of the value of all spoils. Compensation may be adjusted in the future to reflect experience and performance.

3. No party can steal from, physically assault, sexually assault, extort, or blackmail any other party aboard the vessel.

4. Either party can choose to end the contract at any point they wish. The leaving crewmate will be relieved of their position at the nearest port city and is to be paid everything owed in full. After leaving, crewmates are forbidden from sharing information regarding their previous crew.

The terms are pretty concrete and protect me and my crewmates from each other through a contract enforced with magic. You would have to be crazy to go against it, as breaking the terms of the contract could result in your death and/or a guild bounty on your head.

When I ask about the low percentage share of loot, I am told that as the ship is mine, all responsibility to repair, replace, and restock lies with me; therefore, the money will go into my pockets, but also, all expenditures are mine to deal with. If Kaelin improves and becomes more and more valuable, she will get a bigger and bigger cut.

Kaelin agrees to all of these terms, and we prepare to sign the contract.

To magically bind the contract, we must first cut ourselves and release a small amount of blood. We then take the blood onto our thumbs and place them on the contract paper.

When my thumb makes contact with the paper, I can feel my mana being pulled out of me momentarily. The blood lights up, shining for less than a second, and then dries itself onto the parchment, giving the appearance of it being red ink. 

As soon as the contract is signed, I get a system message.

[Class unlocked: Sky Captain - Sky Sovereign exclusive class]