He holds up three fingers.
“I’ve never done it before but I’ll have 3 tons delivered to your ship within 3 hours.” Immediately he’s going through his contacts mentally, to figure it out, before I even agree.
Damn, I’m pretty sure I just got caught up in the moment.
Greed kills.
Slow down Speedy.
“Hold up, let’s just do 1 ton of compost if we can.
It’s a favor for a friend.
Preferably not food scraps unless you can’t get anything else.” Reeling myself back in a bit.
One ton is close to 2000 nutripacks, don’t they weigh about a pound each?
That’s more than enough for 10 cases.
240 nutripacks.
If all of it converted 100% then it’d be about 80 cases but I’m guessing it’s not a perfect transformation.
Most likely a little less than 80 cases, I should experiment and get an idea of the conversion rate and amount of leftovers left behind.
“Ok , 1 ton it is.
I’ll shoot for 1 hour and make it compost.
That’s just aged food scraps, right?” “Yeah aged and turned over a bunch of times.” I agree.
After signing contracts for the metals and nutripacks, it was time to go.
The compost would be delivered to the docks within an hour and I had to figure out what to do with it.
It should be contained and not leaking nastiness, right?
I originally was just going to meet a friend and go to the bank, but now, I’ve bought a ship, found a buying and selling agent in one, bought a literal ton of rotten food scraps, and now have to rush back to Bessie to at least load the compost on board and not leave it in the dock’s receiving area, potentially getting me into trouble and people asking lotsa questions I don’t want to answer.
Oh yeah and make 2-3 cases of nutripacks a day for the next 4 or 5 days.
For some reason I’m not super excited about this upcoming venture.
Maybe making nutripacks is boring or my subconscious thinks doing this is not a good use of my powers, or maybe its that I’m unsure about the process and it could be gross.
Especially since I’m hoping to swipe right on a nice lady while I’m here in town and cleaned up the ship already.
Now I’ll have to take special precautions and buy some scented air fresheners.
I hope it doesn’t stink too much… ugh The money is definitely motivating, though.
That’s enough to get it done.
Grin and bear it.
Once the big box delivery truck drops off the big box of ‘stuff’ and they help me haul it aboard.
It’s time to get busy.
I open the box to see what’s inside and thankfully its compost and mulch, no bad smell at all.
It looks like gorgeous, dark black soil with chunky plant matter not fully decomposed but far gone enough that there’s no smell.
gratitude.
As far as making the nutripacks goes, it’s actually pretty quick, barely 30 seconds and I’ve copied the 3 portions of each of the 3 flavors I’ve got.
Then I put them all in my left hand and copy the 6 of each.
Heh this is where it gets fun and fast.
Now I’ve got 12 of each.
Copy again.
It’s quick, but the mana usage is brutal.
It feels like ⅓ of my mana is gone in just a couple minutes, an hour long workout stuffed into 2 minutes.
The rest can wait till tomorrow.
I was all gung ho to deliver a couple boxes today but I’ll bring him 5 cases tomorrow.
It feels like a sliver of mana is all that remains.
Best not to test it today.
I’ve a craving for something sweet, maybe some candy.
I wonder if that can help alleviate low mana symptoms or even help it recover.
Note to self: pick up some candy on the way home.
Thinking that I just made 68 nutripacks is the only part that feels good, over 60,000 credits if I’m lucky.
That feels good.
Mana deficiency feels like cramps in my stomach.
Oh well, pain is fleeting, and after 5 minutes I’m back to feeling good.
Thankfully it’s only temporary.
Pulling myself into the shower as hot as I can stand and just letting the water hit me, my energy returns.
Now I’m back to normal: good energy, stable emotions(ha), healthy body.
A hot shower feels like a spa.
Steam and scented soaps really help raise my spirits.
Being a License Massage Therapist, for a number of years in my previous life, helps me appreciate some body care.
Ahhh After drying up and dressing in my most presentable clothes, I can’t disappoint my sister, it’s time to start heading home soon.
I message her to see if I should bring anything, and of course she says no then sends me a list of things to pick up.
I’ll add some champagne for the celebration when I tell her we’re buying the Amadeus.
Heh heh, surprise!
Then it’s just taking the public transport tube to the closest station, and heading into the medium sized, local market.
It’s weird to be able to make money but feel like it’s all gone or not here yet.
Either way that’s why they created credit cards.
It will be no problem to pay it off when the nutripack money starts coming in, so organic this and top quality that, some decent beer and a bottle of champagne later I’m happily walking the last few steps to my family home.
Light steps and a smile on my face.
As I step through the door, it’s as if no time has passed.
Everything seems the same, yet different.
Lili has really started to put her own stamp on the place and I’m glad she did.
I’ve been living on Bessie for years and only stay here when I’m back in town every month or so and come to see my sister.
My old room is now a guest suite/office.
It’s fine, better to use it than just let it sit around gathering dust.
Once she gets back we both hang out and it’s like we were never apart.
She’s a good young woman: smart, kind, hard working.
We talk about everything with Uncle Lin and she’s very excited, she knows the Amadeus is an amazing ship.
We’ve been there countless times as kids, and he’s always taken great care of his vehicles.
Dinner and then we drink tea, talking late into the night.
Obviously I gloss over my near death experience and new powers and pirate attack..
I plan to tell her eventually but not just yet, everything is up in the air.
Once things calm down we can reevaluate, but for now lets just focus on getting the Amadeus paid off.
And build my Asteroid Base, of course!
This keeps feeling more and more necessary.
And after I build it, it’s a valuable asset, like real estate.
A secret base.
Yeah that sounds so much more exciting than making nutripacks.
But the potential payoff of nutripacks is pretty decent.
And I’m motivated enough since I need the cash, right now, trying to lock down the deal with Uncle Lin.
All is well until halfway through the night Lili says “I want to take a trip out with you once school gets out for summer.
Hands on experience is valuable and we can hang out while we work.” Momentarily taken aback, I recover and agree immediately.
“Let me just do a shakedown cruise with the Amadeus and when I get back in a month or so you can come then.
” In reality I’ve got to get my Asteroid Base started enough to explain to her my plan and it not look crazy, once she arrives.
It’s a family business, I always planned to tell her.
I just wanted to do it in a way she wouldn’t realize about my powers.
That would give me time to adjust to them and decide whether to ever tell anyone about them.
Ever.
I might be being paranoid but it just feels important not to rush this part.
After all, this is still my first month in this new world and there’s a lot to learn.
Gotta walk before you run.
I’m trying to fly.
We walk around the neighborhood to the small park, drinking tea and talking.
Listening and just being there is enough.
This is family.
It is enough.
I’m going to make enough to protect us both and be happy on whatever path we choose.
Staying in the guest room is more comfortable than the bed on Bessie, but it feels just a bit ‘other’.
Bessie is my home now.
Who knows now with the Amadeus, I might move over there.
The quarters are probably a bit bigger.
I can’t wait to get on and explore it.
A new ship.
My new ship.
Well, our new ship.
Lili is of course half owner, as well.