Workplace Violence on the Rise! Mayor asks for army involvement in quelling unrest.
With socialism normalized in the public perception, the past few weeks have seen workers across Cloudbury striking against their employers in droves. The evolving crisis has crippled our city’s economic and healthcare systems as the strikers are better armed and equipped than the police and owner-supported officials sent to keep the violence under control. Cloudbury General Hospital has already reported overcrowding as it struggles to treat the dozens of wounded first-responders and fatalities have begun to mount. The hospital administration has noted that October 9th was the worst day for them since the street-by-street fighting against bandits this time last year.
In response to the mounting crisis, Mayor Nicholas has called on the Kemerskai administration to authorize the urgent deployment of “a specialized armed force” to deal with the crisis. The Mayor has said that “[such an action] is necessary. I want to resolve this with my own authority, but the timing of these protests couldn’t be worse. Should I take direct action so close to an election – with a known socialist as my main competition – I would be accused of voter tampering. I want to assure the electorate that I am not against worker action when it is safe and productive, but these recent strikes are beyond the pale. Now, only the national government can handle the growing violence while also keeping an already delicate situation from becoming worse. I refuse to turn this into a political sideshow.”
What was left unsaid is the undeniable context: this sudden “worker action” is not an accident; not so close to the election. Rikard Astler – leader of the L-NRP and mayoral candidate – can only benefit from these growing worker tensions. While the rest of the Republic struggles to maintain order, the socialist leader continues to gain support and votes. Certainly, once elected these strikes will “suddenly cease” and things will go “back to normal”… but will this new normal be one which benefits the middle-class or the socialist elite?
- Article on the front page of the Griffonian Republic National Newspaper, Der Republifaner (2nd Week of October 1003 Edition)
October 14th, 1003 – Ring Motors Tractor Plant, Cloudbury, Griffonian Republic – Clara POV
Clara Löwenkin of the L-NRP was understandably frustrated.
The Ring Motors Tractor Plant in the heart of Cloudbury was a sprawling complex in the north-end of the city. As the only domestic producer of tractors, it was a vital part of the national interest; especially in a Republic which was still only one bad harvest away from famine. Numerous foreign experts and large tax injections had been fed into the company to maintain a high level of production. The idea was to create enough tractors to replace the aging steam-powered machines and beasts of burden still used in agriculture. Despite this, it could not keep up with the rapid pace of modernization of the former aristocratic manorial farmsteads of the former Duchy. The Republic to this day still relied on food imports during the Republic’s harsh winters.
The situation was a political powder-keg: the Right-Wing had demanded the dead nobles’ estates transition to private ownership while the Left-Wing wanted collectivization to solve both the unemployment crisis and food shortages at the same time. As it stood, President Kemerskai had stepped in to create an unsatisfactory half-measure: the government collectivized the farmland but with oversight of the R-NRP whose policies created monopolies – such as Ring Motors – which were given exclusive rights to outfit the farms with the industrial tools they needed to function. This was considered “necessary” as past attempts by the R-NRP to purchase the land had resulted in an economic crisis every time. As it turned out, there really was no price high enough on farmland when a nation was half-starved for food. Yet despite the R-NRP’s numerous failings, nogriff had trusted the new socialist party; not when the Skynavian abandonment was so fresh in peoples’ minds at the time.
Times were changing, but Clara still knew she had to treat any issues arising from Ring Motors with delicacy and tact. She had been uncharacteristically moderate in her support of the workers who had begun to strike against unfair changes to their employment. She knew one wrong move could exacerbate the food issues and paint a very unfavorable image of socialism in turn.
‘If only somegriff would remind the owner’s damned thugs about that!’
*PING* *PING* *PING*
The sound of metal crowbars, clubs and axes banging on the brick and concrete exterior of the Ring Motors Factory rang out as dozens of workers piled furniture and equipment against the barred doors and windows. What had, at first, been a simple sit-in strike escalated into a siege as the owner’s union busters tried to break in and attack the workers. Clara had tried reasoning with the thugs, but it was no use. At first she though it was an issue with language: she spoke Cloudburian while they spoke Herzlander. As the situation developed and her limited understanding of Herzlander began to pick up bits-and-pieces of their words, however, she could clearly see that her fluency was not the problem. The pot-shots of rifles hitting the boarded-up windows and repeated yells of “surrender or die” in broken Cloudburian made it clear that they were not “receptive to diplomatic efforts” as Ernst or Rikard might put it.
Clara frowned.
“I think we’re being played.”
One of the Plant’s Factory-line Managers – a male griffon who was taking a break from bracing against the door – turned to Clara and frowned.
“What do you mean? Obviously this nonsense is yet another stupid game by management to-”
Clara shook her head.
“The owner’s being way more aggressive than she should be. This is the second strike like this in as many weeks: once is a coincidence, but twice is a pattern. I’ve been in a lot of strikes and there's always a few days of discussion before the situation breaks down. One-sided violence before the end of day 1 is unheard of.”
The Manager shook his head.
“If that’s the case, why not do whatever you did to resolve that other strike?”
Clara grimaced.
“The workers gave up after a few days, not that I blame them. I hope this doesn’t start a trend or workers everywhere will have to make some hard decisions… Speaking of which, Ring Motors hasn’t had a strike in over a year, right? Did all this just come out-of-the-blue?”
The Manager sneered and spat on the plant floor in disgust.
“That’s right; it’s ridiculous! Honestly, things were going great. The other managers and I were even starting to get a few safety measures built in: rail guards for the turret lathes, emergency shut-offs for the assembly lines, and things like that. Then – out of nowhere – the boss cuts wages in half and we suddenly need to pay for our own tools! I’ve a family to feed and most of the workers are too specialized now to get better pay elsewhere. Ring Motors has a monopoly on engine production. Damn it, I just don’t know what went wrong?!”
“The owner’s been bought off by the mayor to force this strike.”
A new voice sounded out from behind them, causing Clara and the Manager to turn around in surprise. Thankfully, Clara’s instinctive fear that the union busters outside had breached the walls somehow were unfounded. Instead, the voice belonged to a black-and-white chick whose tiny body shimmied her way out of a small vent. The action was suspicious and as the chick glided harmlessly to the ground, the L-NRP activist was put immediately on-edge.
“What- How- Who are you?”
Rather than respond right away, the chick took out a business card from her saddlebag, held it in both claws, and bowed, presenting it towards her. Clara ignored the strange gesture as some weird “business” thing she did not understand, but she reluctantly took the card. It looked well made at least.
The chick looked up and smiled.
“Astrid from Griffon Resources. I’m here to help.”
Clara knew that name.
“Isn’t that Tanya’s Co-Op? Wait, so you’re one of Tanya orphans-”
Astrid shook her head with a furious expression on her face.
“No! I’m the Boss’ employee. I have a job and I’m valuable! I’m not just some orphan!”
Clara knew a social landmine when she heard it and immediately backed off.
“Alright, alright. Sorry, but Tanya being your boss doesn’t explain what you’re doing here. You say the Mayor’s involved, but I don’t see it. How does any of this benefit a politician?”
She gestured to the chaos around her: the workers desperately keeping factory walls from collapsing and fighting however they could against the bandits trying to break in.
Astrid’s expression quickly changed back into a smile again. She coughed into a claw and straightened up.
“We at Griffon Resources are committed to a culture of workplace resolution using a diverse range of effective strategies while ensuring compliance with all federal and municipal regulations. Our goal is quality and that means consulting services tailor-made to suit your business needs. If I can get in touch with your business owner, I’m sure I can get this whole situation cleared up without any risk of further violence.”
‘What in Boreas’ name…?’
Clara sighed. Normally, she would have dismissed the chick as just another weirdo. In the context of being one of Tanya’s friends – one who slipped into a besieged factory unnoticed no less – Clara had to at least hear her out.
“Right… I’m not sure I got all that, but regardless, having a meeting with the boss is easier said than done. The goons outside are content to just bash or shoot their way through any of us to get what they want. I’m not risking any lives here. I brought in enough food to last us a few more days so-”
Astrid turned furious again.
“No! You can’t do that! Don’t you see you’re playing into the mayor’s claws?”
Clara was just confused now.
“You keep saying this is some conspiracy by the mayor, but I’m not sure if you understand politics. If anything this whole situation works in our favor. They’re trying to kill us! How else could-”
Astrid smacked her face, grabbed a newspaper from her saddlebag and threw it at the L-NRP activist.
“Argh, you don’t get it! Look at what people are saying about you.”
Clara unfolded the newspaper and read the headline.
“…12-time convicted criminal – L-NRP socialist Clara Löwenkin – fires on perimeter guards?! What?! They’re saying I’ve riled up the workers and I’m trying to use the strike to overthrow the government! What kind of crap is this? They have no proof; there isn’t even a picture! How do they think they’ll get away with this?”
Astrid raised an eyebrow.
“The hospital is giving out death certificates to whoever asks for them… apparently Mayor Nicholas’ “donations” to them are paying dividends now. Of course, even that probably isn’t necessary. My Boss said that real proof doesn’t matter, just what people believe. If you keep having strikes and they keep saying guards are getting killed…? Well, they’ll think this is yet another Cavegrove Lumberyard Massacre.”
Clara crumpled up the paper in frustration.
“Then what are we going to do? We can’t quit now! I refuse to condemn these workers to slavery just to avoid some bad press! Socialism is supposed to help the workers!”
Astrid leaned on one of the plant’s machines with a smarmy grin on her face.
“Thankfully, Griffon Resources is here to help. We want Rikard elected just as much as you do, so he can get the Boss out of prison. All you need to do is wave a white flag out the window.”
It took Clara a moment to process what she just heard.
“Excuse me?! I just said we’re not surrendering-”
Astrid groaned.
“Do they look like they want you to surrender? Just do it. You want peace talks right? Just push a flag out the door and let Griffon Resources take care of the rest.”
The white flag worked as well as could be expected. One of the workers had attached a thick white cloth to the end of a metal pole and stuck it out a second-story window. It had been far away from the union busters trying to break in, but that did not last long. After about a minute, the bandits had brought a ladder and quickly dismantled the makeshift flag. They even managed to use the hole made by the flagpole to make even more headway towards breaking into the factory.
‘I won’t be making that mistake again.’
In hindsight, Clara should have never listened to the chick, yet it had been worth a shot. If – for some reason – the thugs had taken the flag as a legitimate sign of surrender, it might have been a way to bring both sides to a table to settle things diplomatically. As it was, it just reinforced in her mind that there was no way out of this scenario except through the liberal application of good-old-fashioned violence. As she ran through methods in her mind on how to use the machines in the factory to build makeshift weapons, however, Astrid seemed to be perfectly confident that things were going well.
“Cease fire! Stop it! I’m going out! Damn it, I said pull back! Do you want me to cause problems with your boss?!”
Before Clara had a chance to question Astrid’s confidence, a new female Herzlander voice shouted its way through the din and chaos of the siege. Clara peeked through a crack in a nearby boarded window and saw two well-dressed griffons make their way through the crowd of thugs at the doors. The thugs slowly backed away from the griffons and so Clara did not need to understand Herzlander to realize that this could only be the Owner of Ring Motors.
The other well-dressed person – male griffon next to the boss – shouted in Cloudburian.
“Sonja Ring – the Owner of Ring Motors – wants to speak with Clara of the L-NRP! We come in peace, but if you’re worried, we’ll stand between you and our guards to avoid further violence! We’re having them back off, see?”
Clara could tell – based on Sonja’s rage-filled expression – that the translation was almost certainly missing a few “heated” comments. Sure enough though, the thugs and union busters slowly stepped back a good 100 meters away from the factory.
Astrid stood in front of Clara with a smirk.
“Looks like everything’s going according to plan.”
Clara grabbed her by the withers.
“What did you do?”
Astrid calmly escaped her grasp, never letting her smirk fall from her face.
“Come on, they want to speak to us.”
Clara frowned.
“They want to speak with me.”
Ignoring her, Astrid quickly rushed to unbar the door despite several workers trying to convince the chick otherwise. Clara could tell that everygriff was fearful of what would happen if the door was left open should hostilities resume, but she sighed and told the workers to let the chick do what she wanted. If no one went out to meet the owner, the situation would never improve.
‘I guess after working with Tanya, I’m used to chicks causing no end of trouble. I shouldn’t trust her but… Astrid at least has some sort of plan. That’s better than me right now. I’ve been on the back-paw since this whole thing started.’
With the door unbarred, Clara and Astrid walked under a newly made white flag towards the factory owner and the translator. Clara would have preferred to keep the chick far away from any chance to cause an incident, but apart from tying her down, that would be impossible. The last thing this situation needed was for the chick rush out from the factory and cause a panic. The next best place for her, then, would be by Clara’s side.
The translator was the first to speak.
“I am Johannes Stonebeak, translating on behalf of Sonja Ring here.”
Clara immediately recognized the griffon as one who had translated for a number of other owners in past strikes. Stonebeak was a personal translator for Heinrich Kingfeather; the Leader of the R-NRP.
“I’m Clara Löwenkin. I suppose it should be telling that one of Heinrich’s translators is here. I guess I should’ve expected the R-NRP to be behind this.”
Stonebeak grimaced.
“What? No, I’m not here under orders from the R-NRP. Please, this is a private affair and-”
Clara growled.
“I’ve seen enough slander in the newspaper to know that’s a lie! What do you-”
Sonja Ring threw a newspaper which Clara deftly caught.
“Enough of your Cloudburian gibberish. What in Boreas’ name is this?! Are you trying to destroy my business? Did you think your scare-tactics would work?”
Stonebeak reluctantly took a step back and translated everything word-for-word.
Clara looked to the newspaper headline with surprise: “Hired Thugs ruthlessly beat Ring Motor Strikers trying to Surrender”. Below the title was a picture taken from behind the perimeter fence surrounding the plant. It not only showed the union busters tearing down the white flag they had put up just a few hours earlier, but also the owner in the foreground, looking at the scene with satisfaction.
Clara looked down towards Astrid.
‘How did you…? You had this all planned out from the beginning? You even framed the shot perfectly…’
All but confirming her thoughts, Astrid smirked at the factory owner.
“That newspaper isn’t published yet… but that can change at any time. The question is, what are you going to do about it? Is this what you want, your business ruined because the mayor couldn’t do his own dirty work?”
Waiting a moment for Stonebeak to translate, Sonja smirked back.
“Is that what you think? You don’t know the first thing about-”
Surprisingly, Astrid did not wait for the translation and responded back in Herzlander.
“Your business is being destroyed as we speak and you’re smiling?! Your valuable, skilled, workers are talking about quitting, your Public Relations tainted and for what? A few favors from a mayor that hasn’t even been elected yet?”
Sonja frowned.
“A mayor that will be elected when-”
Astrid gestured around.
“Is this what the actions of a mayor destined to be elected looks like? If Nicholas can only succeed on the ruins of your business, that’s not things going well, that’s desperation!”
Sonja let out a frustrated scoff.
“And what’s the alternative? A socialist? Better my business ruined now with a chance of recovery than letting that idiot get elected. He’d ruin the nation!”
Once Stonebeak had finished translating what was going on, Clara stepped in between them. She needed to take back control of the situation.
“Enough! Rikard has already vowed to suspend any socialist reforms. We have Tobias Sivenhof himself vouching for us. What more do you want?!”
Sonja glared.
“And why are you suddenly walking-back your radical beliefs now? All you socialists know is deceit. You sneak into my factories and undermine my otherwise happy and productive workers. Why should I believe anything you say?”
Astrid stepped back into the conversation.
“Because you’ve seen the truth for yourself! You now know how low the mayor is willing to go for power. Is it any surprise a coalition has formed between the L-NRP and C-NRP to take him down? We just want the mayor’s insanity to end!”
Sonja looked like she wanted to yell something in response but she paused. She was looking behind them, towards the factory.
“Insanity… This whole situation really is crazy, isn’t it.”
Sonja groaned and frustratingly scratched at the feathers on her head. She turned to Clara.
“Argh, fine! Alright, you “win”. I’ll undo any changes to their wages, but you let the workers know this wasn’t my fault. My problem is with you L-NRP nutcases, not my workers. I want you out of here and I want them back to work tomorrow like none of this ever happened.”
One of the union-busting thugs overhearing the conversation yelled out.
“What?! We had a deal-”
Sonja’s expression turned nasty as she pointed to the thugs and then towards the perimeter gate of the factory.
“We had a deal. Now I expect you off of my property! Right! Now! Did you think I would just sit by and watch you tear apart my legacy with axes and crowbars forever?! This was not what I agreed to. You tell the mayor we can “renegotiate” once he’s re-elected and not a moment earlier!”
The armed thugs grumbled but they did not push their luck. With shouts of “the mayor will hear of this” and “you haven’t see the last of us” they filed their way out of the factory gates.
With the situation finally under control, Clara was more than happy to head back to the workers and tell them the good news. She left out nothing, informing them of the mayor’s plot, the politics involved, and that their lives would soon be returning back to normal. While she would have preferred that Rikard’s mayoral candidacy had not caused the problem in the first place, it proved in her mind that the L-NRP was growing to be a serious political influence in the country.
The Factory Line Manager was relieved.
“Thank Boreas this is over. I’m not happy going back to work tomorrow and pretending like my boss wasn’t willing to throw us all under the bus like that, but I’m not sure if I can blame him. I never would’ve guessed the mayor was so corrupt! I guess I know who I’m voting for!”
The workers cheered, hugged and shook claws with one-another. After a few minutes, they instinctively got to work: reorganizing the piled-up furniture and equipment back to their proper places in the factory. Clara was so distracted by the scene that she only now realized she had seen nor heard from Astrid in a while. It took her a few more minutes, but just as she was about to give up her search, she found the chick talking with Sonja Ring and Stonebeak outside.
Clara had missed most of their conversation, but she arrived in time to see Astrid pointing to some complicated-looking charts and graphs.
“…and so by focusing more on health benefits and other intangibles, you’re more likely to retain workers at less cost. It’s all about setting yourself apart from the competition. It might seem unnecessary, but if you can avoid strikes before they happen for a couple of years, you can see on this graph here that the overall likelihood of a future strike is reduced by as much as 80%.”
Clara was not surprised to see Astrid talking to the owner – Tanya had also been strangely chatty with capitalists – but what did surprise Clara was that Sonja seemed receptive. The conversation was in Herzlander, but she did not need an understanding of the language to know that a capitalist nodding in agreement with something was not anything she would have approved of.
Once Astrid saw the L-NRP activist approach, she quickly finished her speech and did more strange “bowing” gestures to give her business card to the 2 capitalists. Clara was puzzled that they were just as confused about the bowing as she had been.
‘I thought it was a weird business thing, but if not… where did Astrid learn to bow like that?’
Astrid smiled through their bewilderment as Sonja and Stonebeak put the business cards into their coat pockets.
“Sorry, but it seems I have to go. Please keep Griffon Resources in mind! Our rates are very reasonable!”
Sonja nodded before gesturing for Stonebeak to follow her back into her factory. No doubt she wanted to salvage any amount of goodwill she might have left with her employees. Clara hoped the owner died in a fire.
Clara turned to glare at Astrid.
“Well? What was that about? Why were you getting so cozy with the Owner of Ring Motors?”
Astrid frowned.
“Is that the thanks I get for helping you? Tanya’s worked with you socialists to mediate with the capitalists before, what’s the difference here?”
Clara grimaced.
“Ah, sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just… Tanya spent months working with us before those negotiations. I suppose I just don’t trust you yet.”
Astrid smiled… and Clara realized every smile the chick had shown until now was fake. This one was bright and genuine. Astrid held the pile of papers she had shown to Sonja tightly to her chest.
“If you trust the Boss, you can trust us. We’ll follow wherever Our Leader wishes and right now, that means we’re apolitical. We’ll work for whoever is paying us: socialist and capitalist. After all, Griffon Resources is a paradigm shift in workplace management that anygriff can benefit from.”
Clara frowned.
“You should know better than anygriff that the capitalists treat the poor in the slums like trash. Is Tanya really going through with this?”
Astrid scoffed.
“And why not? Did any of you adults in the L-NRP keep her out of prison?’
Clara grimaced.
“That…”
She sighed.
“I suppose I’ve no right to argue with that. I still don’t know why she was arrested, but we failed her to protect her when she needed it most.”
Astrid nodded.
“At least you’re finally doing the right thing. Besides, I failed her too… but I won’t let anything happen to her ever again. Tanya’s going to help all of us orphans get jobs and become productive and valuable griffons. We won’t let you adults keep treating us like dirt!”
Clara looked to the small chick with a pitiful expression.
“I guess I took Tanya’s support for the L-NRP for granted; I never considered it from her perspective. We did do some charity in the slums and we helped her out, but I won’t pretend that we’ve done much to improve things for the orphans in the long term. If working a little for the capitalists on the side means a better life for you chicks, who am I to get in your way? You deserve a chance at happiness.”
Astrid gave her a fierce grin.
“The Boss has already promised me happiness so there’s no “chance” involved. Whether its from prison or a Skyfallian penthouse, I’d follow her anywhere.”
Astrid shook her head.
“No, I’m doing all this for her, not myself. I’ll make sure that Our Leader gets everything she deserves and more.”
Clara tried to get clarification on the ominous phrasing, but the chick ignored her, turned around and left. It was only when she met with a group of chicks just outside the perimeter fence that she realized why she felt so suspicious and uncomfortable around her.
‘She’s just like me when I was a chick… The hatred of adults, the drive to fix things for everygriff, the anger… I just hope Tanya’s the same positive role-model as Rikard was for me. Those years of pain aren’t something I’d wish on anygriff.’
October 16th, 1003 – Red’s Casino, Cloudbury, Griffonian Republic – Red POV
Red was having her ordinary routine disrupted again and again.
She should have known that getting involved with Tanya – the most infamous street rat in the slums – would be setting her business up for upheaval, but Red had thought that would only come months or years down the road. Between Tanya’s arrest and the election, however, Red found herself getting more and more tied up in a web of conspiracy; a web she could not see the edges of anymore.
“…and that’s how the situation was handled. The mayor’s plot is foiled and Tanya has a potential new customer, killing two pegasi with one stone.”
Astrid finished her account of the Ring Motors strike with a clinical detachment Red was unused to with the chick. How quickly things had changed for the small black-and-white youngster. Just a few months earlier, Astrid had been a moody and violent teenager who was more likely to solve her problems with a butterfly knife than with words. The stereotypical “slum rat” who led a small gang, hated everything, and would do almost anything for a hot meal. Red had thought the chick would be the perfect little spy into Tanya’s new business: somegriff who would not grow attached and would be perfectly happy supplying information in return for a little extra cash on the side.
‘Just one visit to the prison was all it took for Astrid to change sides… although that isn’t quite right. Astrid was never really on my side, but I also never thought she could have a side. I suppose it isn’t a problem – I never spied on Tanya because of a lack of trust – but it’s one more concern in a quickly growing list. It’s common sense that I want to better understand the type of business Tanya’s planning, especially since the chick’s so Boreas-damned tight-lipped about her plans. It’s clear that she has no qualms about criminal activity – if her history as a drug-running “courier” is any indication – and she wants to work closely with me, yet she refuses to let me invest in her business…’
Tanya was a frustrating mess of contradictions. She refused Red’s money because she “could not settle on an ROI percentage and stock options” but it was not like Red was strapped for cash. She had so much excess unlaundered money she was stuffing it beneath the casino’s floorboards. She could not use it – not even to donate to charity – because it would bring a lot of unwanted attention, but investing in Tanya’s business was the sort of thing that could help launder some of it. Tanya ought to know that, but she still refused.
Red looked up from her paperwork and let out a frustrated sigh in Astrid’s direction.
“Then I guess everything is working out perfectly for Tanya’s release. It seems my contacts in the media worked out well for you. You must have really tightened the screws on them if you could get them to make you a draft newspaper in less than two hours. Anyway, with this, the last chance for Mayor Nicholas to be re-elected has slipped through the cracks; not that he had any real chance to begin with. While the former mayor might’ve seen the obvious political maneuvering of the C-NRP and L-NRP joining forces under Rikard, he completely missed my own operations in the slums. The election on the 31st will see a near 100% turnout of the “lower-classes”. I’ve had my griffs promoting Rikard hard and even had regular soup-kitchens in the future locations of the polling stations. Nogriff seems to appreciate how effective a little money in the slums can be in getting votes, and I aim to surprise them.”
Astrid smirked.
“There’s at least one griff who knows that all too well. The Boss said… she said…”
Astrid frowns, takes out a well-used notepad and flips through the pages. Finding a page, she looked up with a bright smile. It was an expression Red had never expected on the chick’s face until recently. She had been dour and moody for as long as Red had known her.
“Ah, right! The Boss said that she’s “expecting a lot of growth once our results speak for themselves… even 1000% annualized ROI… anygriff will be able to see the explosion of worker productivity as a start of mass-industrialization and would be stupid not to capitalize”.”
Red tapped a claw on her desk.
“Mass-Industrialization, huh? From anygriff else that would be idle talk. The R-NRP’s been harping on the “inevitable start of the 2nd Industrial Revolution” for over 15 years now. Tanya – on the other claw – has already proven her expertise. Despite only being a consultant, she’s made the 3rd Munitions Plant in Squark so effective it still cranks out one hundred 11mm rounds an hour over their competitors; that’s despite heavy investment from the Right in the other factories to try and save face. Armaments Minister Erich Kreiger still doesn’t know how they do it; he thinks it’s some scheme cooked up by the L-NRP, the fools. No, Tanya doesn’t know the definition of idle talk and 10-times yearly growth… even in just a few years, she’ll be the head of an organization of tens of thousands…”
Astrid grinned.
“…and she has slums practically overflowing with her future loyalists. She’s already approved of me hiring as many griffons as I can find.”
Red frowned.
“Are you sure? That doesn’t sound like the cautious chick I know. While Tanya might’ve been the best street rat courier in the business, that didn’t come from recklessness. She has a keen eye for the path of least resistance. She never took jobs that sounded too shady or were too overtly illegal. Hiring hundreds of griffons out-of-the-blue would bring a lot of unwanted attention.”
That was probably the trait Red liked most about Tanya. After spending most of her time working with irresponsible Mob Bosses – which were content to spend their time bragging about their accomplishments or planning reckless high-stakes crimes – Tanya was a breath of fresh air. She always prioritized the long-term with only her recent, confusing arrest marring an otherwise perfect record. Even to this day, nogriff seemed to realize that she was a purely self-interested individual with no care at all for politics.
Astid had a look of realization.
“Of course…! The Boss had said something before, but now it all makes sense. She made it absolutely clear that we needed to look like a “harmless” company. We’re supposed to be “apolitical” and focused only on “improving productivity”.”
Red raised an eyebrow.
“And how is anygriff going to buy that when the business grows at an unprecedented pace? It wouldn’t take much searching to realize that Tanya’s planning on taking control of the city, if not the country.”
Astrid grinned.
“That’s my job to figure out, but the Boss hasn’t steered me wrong yet. Her new workplace organizes employees into three categories: the workers who work, the owners who lead, and Griffon Resources which manage. The Boss has obviously taken on the role as leader to bring us into a bright new future, but our new workers from the slums still need management.”
Red gave the chick a knowing look.
“And I guess you are the one to do that?”
Astrid took out a thick binder from her saddlebag and pointed to it.
“It’s not a guess: it’s all outlined in her book. The Head of Griffon Resources is the one in charge of hiring within a company and the Boss has given that role to me. I’m not a stupid chick who needs things spelled out. That’s not how Griffon Resources is supposed to work. The Boss has laid out her vision and I will work to make it a reality. We’ll show those lying adults what us chicks can do!”
Red groaned.
“So long as you remember there are still adults like me out there that supported you along the way. I know the Herzlanders ruined your chickhood, but I remember the time before the war and the Cloudburians weren’t any better. Don’t let your vengeance cloud your-”
Astrid growled.
“I don’t need you to tell me that, Mr.Murdered-my-former-boss!”
She took a moment to calm herself down.
“I’m… grateful – really, I won’t forget what you or any of the other so-called “honest” adults have done – but this is bigger than you, of any of us! This isn’t about my petty grudges. The Boss’ vision will have every chick able to live a life – a real life – without scrounging for food or being spat on and kicked to the curb. I’ll do anything to see that through, but you’ve nothing to worry about. You aren’t going to get in our way.”
With her report finished, Astrid turned and walked out the door.
Red could only sigh. She opened the bottom shelf of her desk and pulled out a bottle of Cloudburian Plum Akvavit – Blommesnaps – and downed a shot as soon as she poured it into a glass. It was, unfortunately, far inferior to the product Cloudbury was once known for; the alcohol which allowed the Plumenjar merchant family to take control of the Duchy and form a dynasty centuries ago. Red had a secret distillery working around-the-clock trying to perfect the old recipe, but it was slow going. Still, it was far superior to the weak Imperial ales and mead the Herzlanders were so fond of. She knew that this would forever be an area of production they would never beat a Cloudburian in.
‘Nothing to worry about, huh? I suppose Astrid’s right. Even if I can’t invest into Tanya’s company with money, the amount of work I’m putting in is sure to keep me in their good books. That said, I would also have nothing to worry about if I simply ratted out on them. I suppose if I was a patriot, warning the political factions of the true nature of Tanya’s business would be the logical thing to do…’
She brought up her glass in the rough direction of the City’s downtown and with a cheer of “Jubel!” drained the glass.
‘Ha! Like I give a damn. Look what patriotism earned Tanya? Stewing in a cage and forced to rely on the good-will of politicians to get her out… I mean, she wasn’t a real patriot, but they didn’t know that. No, Cloudburians have to stick together. If Tanya thinks her plan can earn ourselves a place in our own country again, then I’d be the worst kind of hypocrite to not give her all the support I’ve got.’
As she drank in the dimly-lit office, however, Red could not completely give up on the thoughts she tried to bury. She still had no idea of Tanya’s true intentions. It was true that the chick was no Republican patriot… but she was no Cloudburian patriot either. Yet… nogriff would amass so much power just to fade into the background. There had to be some end-goal, but what?
Red had already been through one revolution. Was she ready for another?
November 8th, 1003 – City Courthouse, Cloudbury, Griffonian Republic – Tanya POV
‘Finally… it’s all over.’
Tanya supposed she should be feeling happy about finally being released from prison – perhaps thankful to the hundreds of griffons that had worked on her behalf to fix the corruption that had her arrested in the first place – but after 7 days and over 100 hours being transferred to-and-from the prison and the courthouse, she just felt relief. The whole situation was rushed, but she could only hope it would be the last time she would ever set paw and claw in a courtroom again.
As soon as she exited the Cloudbury City Courthouse, she was mobbed by the L-NRP. In particular, Ernst Thällgriff swept her up in a hug and had tears in his eyes.
“Thank Eyr you’re alright. You’re never going to be arrested again, you hear me?’
Tanya could not help but roll her eyes at the dramatic display.
“Yes, yes. I’ll remain innocent. It wasn’t like I’d ever done anything illegal in the first place.”
Rikard, Clara and her student-employee Astrid were quick to follow suit: shaking her claw, patting her on the back, and formally bowing respectively. The strange use of Japanese formality was punctuated by her personal, unpleasant, thoughts on other matters.
‘I’ve mixed feelings about a socialist in charge of the city… but perhaps working together with Tobias Sivenhof and the C-NRP will finally mellow out the radical elements.’
Tanya was not hopeful, but that did not change the fact that they helped her, so she kept that to herself. She gave Rikard a wry smile.
“I suppose congratulations are in order Mayor Rikard. While everygriff said you’d won the election, I could hardly believe it. The L-NRP could barely scrape together 20% of the vote when I was arrested.”
Rikard nodded and gestured to Astrid.
“Yes, and I hear I have you to thank partially for that. Between the wedge issue of your arrest and your… employee here, we were able to overcome all of the problems thrown our way.”
Tanya could not help but chuckle.
‘Did he think I’d be impressed by such obvious false-modesty? Like Astrid could have possibly done anything…’
Tanya smiled and did her best not to roll her eyes.
“That’s right, Astrid here mentioned something about that. I’m glad she… helped in some way.”
Astrid seemed to miss her sarcasm. She beamed with a bright smile.
“I was able to help free you! Now you can come back home and teach us all to be productive and valuable citizens again!”
Rikard coughed into a clawed fist.
“As touching as all this is, it has also brought something to my attention. It seems you’ve been planning to make your business “apolitical”. I’ve been led to believe you will work with the capitalists as well as us.”
‘That’s right! I’ll finally be free of you socialists! Finally, I can put my future knowledge to good use without the fear of the rise of a griffon red-fascism. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I inadvertently caused the Republic to make a “Great Leap Forward” with some horrible misunderstanding of Japan’s economic practices.’
Tanya had only worked with the L-NRP out of necessity. What little work she had done for them was only to stave off the L-NRP’s most radical aspects. Now that she was out of prison and had a growing network of capitalist workplaces that were interested in hiring her company as Griffon Resource consultants, she had no reason to stick around.
Of course, that did not mean she would burn bridges. Rikard was the new mayor after all.
“That’s right. Now I don’t want sound ungrateful for all your generosity and support, but I’ll be leaving the party to start my business in earnest. While your party has highlighted a lot of problems that I want to fix in the Republic, I just don’t see how staying in the party can help. Mediating disputes, helping run a factory; everything I’ve done has been things any business could do and I want to share those ideas with everygriff. I hope that by working with capitalists, I can show them a new, better way. While I hate the soc… ahem, I mean… while I hate the capitalists, I’ve seen how they can do better when pushed in the right direction. While you work to make Cloudbury a… better place… I’ll work to make things better one workplace at a time.”
Tanya took out a bound manuscript from a saddlebag.
“I plan on releasing what I’ve learned in the form of this book. Once I’m finished, I hope you’ll consider giving it a read and realizing that you have nothing to fear from me.”
Rikard’s features softened at that.
“I see. While I might not agree on the need for a middle-of-the-road approach, I certainly won’t stop you from trying. I only hope you remember that while you’re no longer an official member of the L-NRP on our payroll, you’re still a socialist. You can be proud of that. No matter what you do, I can rest assured that you’ll be helping this nation become a better, more socialist place.”
Tanya could feel bile rising from her throat, but she was able to keep herself controlled enough to keep a horrified and disgusted expression from showing itself. She could only hope they would think she was just “feeling emotional”.
Thankfully, Astrid seemed to realize something was wrong and was quick to drag her away by a forelimb.
“Come on! Your book is finally finished and now that you’re out of prison we can get it published! Oh I can’t wait to show it to everygriff!”
Tanya chuckled, glad to be pulled away from the conversation. However, before she could finally leave, Clara grabbed her by the withers. She stared into Tanya’s eyes.
“Tanya… I’m sorry we couldn’t help you sooner, but be careful, alright? I know you’ll probably do fine on your own, but we’re here to help you if you need it. Us socialists are used to small differences in opinions dividing us, but we’re all in this together. Don’t try to grow up too fast, okay?”
Ernst was quick to nod his head in agreement.
“If it was up to me, we’d do everything we could to keep the problems of the Republic away from chicks like you, but… it would be grossly hypocritical of me to hold you back when you’re helping so many of your fellow orphans live happy lives.”
Tanya was tired of the theatrics and let herself be pulled away by her employee. However, she quickly yelled back before she got out of hearing so she would have the last word.
“I’m just doing what I’ve always done: proving that compromise and negotiations are not zero-sum games. Contracts and deals are best when everygriff wins. You’ll see! By the time I retire, you won’t even recognize the Republic!”