#mammets

Kind of? Mostly NPCs at the moment but-

Nerys, and no that isn't her real name, but she totally wasn't an excommunicated pirate or anything either, is Ruhka's mining retainer. She's generally heavy lifting and intimidation, as is needed, and maybe taking out a few kneecaps. She's also good to be a bartender at the drop of a hat, and is the only one besides Ruhka that the mammets listen to.

Rikuto is Ruhka's botanist retainer, who also generally takes care of the books and information trade. Ruhka got him out of what amounted to indentured servitude he'd tripped into as a kid being an orphan in Shirogane. He ends up cooking when Ruhka can't, usually, and keeps the yards in line.

The mammet brigade, Steve, Hiko, Alex, and Quinn, are actually usually the pilots of the ships, especially for routine trips. They also take care of basic maintenance of the ships, though the bigger projects are left to Ruhka and Canum. Admittedly they also end up needing to clean up after those two as well. They have their quirks though, Steve's voice processor is damaged so he only really speaks in static, Hiko is excitable and just a little bit of a pyromaniac, Alex is very shy and soft spoken, and Quinn is the equivalent of an angsty preteen. They all chose their own colors when they got repaired, and names in most cases. Node, who's leaning towards being named Lark, is of course included, and Ruhka is working on a more mobile option for them.

Other NPCs being my alts, kinda sorta are and aren't considered crew. Canum is an engineer, Salt is research, Hazard is muscle, and Corbeau is contacts.

To Miss Sasamu Samu at the Dufresne Bellworks Ul'dahn branch office this letter be delivered, directly and with discretion.

Right worthy miss, I greet you well, with prayers that you and all yours remain in good health and spirits. I write to let you know that, after our conversation of a few nights past, I took the liberty of contacting an old friend of mine whose family have very long been practitioners and teachers of the astrological arts and is uniquely positioned to present a comprehensive and unbiased assessment of its state in Ishgard today. If you remain curious about the reliability and applications of that tradition, I am sure he or his son would be happy to answer your questions; pray do not be fearful of imposing upon them, as theirs are warm and open hearts, ready to form new friendships with outsiders of like goodwill.

But more than that, I pick up my pen today to communicate to you some further thoughts on the state of young ø. I admit my knowledge of your field was to that point so meager that I had never really put much thought to its kind and the ethical questions that surround them; when you laid out the problem before me I confess I was astounded and alarmed. The creation of tireless workers of mere animal intelligence, while also not without ethical considerations, is one thing, but the possibility of such workers evolving to an intelligent awareness similar to that of a Spoken child is certainly disturbing. Of course some may argue that their state would not be equivalent to slavery if, upon becoming aware, they elected to remain employed by their masters -- but I continue to feel uneasy, as I picture now the goldsmith building them such that they report only cheerfulness no matter the situation and am unconvinced such happy bondage would not still be bondage.

Late night Mammet concert...