Conversation · Frittte clerk

"A warehouse? I don't know. Maybe. I don't really care what Frittte does."

"Come on, give me something to work with here."

She looks up from under her brow.

"Fine -- Frittte doesn't have a warehouse. Just a little back room here. M'kay?" She turns back to her magazine without waiting for you to respond.

"This is important."

She scrunches up her face into an expression of consummate adolescent scepticism.

"What kind of discounts can a man with net worth get in here?"

"Uhm..." She looks up from her magazine, not really sure how to reply.

That's teen-speak for 'no' -- no discounts.

She couldn't be more unbothered by your question if she tried.

"Excuse us -- my partner here of course knows that net worth is not legal tender." The lieutenant gives you a quick glance.

"Can you tell me anything about this reality we're in?"

"Reality? You mean... what reality? Economic reality? Or..."

She is like a student unexpectedly called upon by a teacher. Can she answer the classroom question?

"No, I meant the physical reality."

"I don't know. What about it?"

"Where are we?"

"We're in Frittte?"

"No, I meant -- where are we, on a larger scale?"

"As mankind or... as a nation or..."

What will her essay prompt be?

"As a mankind."

"In a good place?" She rubs her face, thinking.

"I mean, science is doing great... and this radiocomputer thing seems to be kinda big? I don't know." She shrugs, then folds her magazine back.

"Like... where in the world?"

"We're in Revachol? Like, on the Insulindian isola?"

"I was just testing your knowledge."

"That wasn't very hard." She folds her magazine back.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome?" She folds her magazine back.

"As a nation."

"Uhm, we're in a.... we're in a..." She rubs her face, thinking.

"We're in a transition! You know, transitioning from, uh... monarchy to democracy, all that stuff." She nods, then folds her magazine back.

"You know what? Never mind."

"M'kay. I won't." She folds her magazine back and starts to read.

"What is the Revolution?"

"When ordinary people take over the government and, uhm... demand democracy?"

"What about the one we had here in Revachol?"

"Yeah, it happened like 50 years ago or so. Sorry, I'm not very good at this. At history, I mean."

"What is pale?"

"I think science still doesn't know? There's only speculation."

"Though some of my friends from school have actually travelled through pale on their trip to Mundi. They said it was like being high." She smiles widely, then catches herself.

"Not that they would know anything about being high, it's just an expression." The girl adjusts her hat.

"The Coalition -- what's that? Someone told me there is one."

"Our government?"

"Or do you mean something else...? Sorry, I really need to finish this article." She taps the magazine on the counter.

"I won't bother you with this non-sense anymore."

"Cool." She seems happy to return to her reading.

"What time is it?"

"I don't know, look at the clock. It's right behind you on the wall."

The clock shows the time at 10:09. The hands seem to be still. It's apparent the clock doesn't work.

"Yes, tell me about the economic reality."

"I don't really know anything? I mean, I'm fifteen."

"Fifteen is an excellent time to learn about the economic reality."

"Yeah." She looks at the clock on the wall. "That's why I'm working my ass off in Frittte. So I guess, like, that's economic."

"What about the physical reality then?"

"Welcome to Frittte! Feel free to look around or something, everything is out on the shelves." She returns to her magazine.

What's that magazine she's reading?

"Let's proceed, I have some questions for you." (Continue.)

"Um, okay. I'm not really supposed to be chatting to anyone, but..." She puts down the magazine.