Challenge #02126-E297: Uncommon Ground
"You're 'Clancy of the' where was it again?"
"The Overflow."
"You're a laundryman?" -- Anon Guest
Human Daz spared a dubious glance towards Rilthi Baz and wondered, not for the first time, if she was being very gently wound up. "Uhm," she said. "What?"
Clancy just sighed. "Yeah... an 'overflow' is an area where the flood waters tend to overflow. When the river floods, that's where the excess water goes. Good for grasslands and grazing."
"Also rice," added Human Daz. "I'm guessing your mum was a big fan of ole Banjo?"
"That, and we're actually near the Bogan River[1], so yeah. All of the above."
Human Daz winced and sucked air through her teeth. "Did you get good at running or fighting?"
This was apparently the right thing to say, since Clancy laughed. "I made sure they remembered to not make my life hell. Three years before they introduced the no-tolerance policy in all schools."
Baz sighed and muttered, "Typical Deathworlders."
"Pretty much, yeah. I'm quick on my feet, pretty good a bodging up a patch, and I can make just about anything out of anything. Am I hired or what?"
Baz looked to Daz, who said, "He's not bullshitting." Which was, out on the Edge Territories, a fairly solid endorsement.
Clancy said, "Are they legit?"
Baz, a N'Ozzie and not a Terran said, "I'm almost sure they are."
There would be a learning curve on all sides, thus proving once more that the highest level of effort to achieve understanding between species always happened on the Edge.
[1] Yes, Australia actually has a Bogan River and a Bogan Shire. I'm fairly certain that people from there are pretty sick of the comparison, and also trying to distance themselves from the insult.
[Image (c) Can Stock Photo / showface]
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