~*~
Lisa looked down and saw Ferman standing at the end of the ramp with a small group of young men dressed in brown hooded robes much like those Milton wore. They had a skinny mule hitched to a two-wheeled cart with them.
She grabbed one of the smaller bags from the pile by the airlock and peeked inside. It held a mixed collection of gold and silver coins. It should do.
Milton led the way down the ramp to meet his master, with Lisa and the rest of the ship's crew behind him. The drones would bring the treasure as soon as she gave Sims the word.
"Commander Chang," Ferman said. "Milton's orc told me he would need help carrying the treasure." He eyed the small bag she was holding with obvious disappointment. "Is that it?"
"This?" she said, lifting the bag. "No. This is for Milton."
"Me?" the apprentice said.
"Yes," Lisa said. She now addressed the senior mage. "Ferman, your apprentice has been a great help to us, and we wanted to express our appreciation with a small boon." She handed the bag to Milton who accepted it, slack-jawed and silent. "I'll have the funding for the sewer project brought down presently. I assume such a boon is in order?"
"Um, well, of course. What is yours is yours to give as you see fit."
"So now this is his to do with as he sees fit, correct?" Her original thought was simply to present the bag to Milton in front of a credible witness so there would be no chance of him being accused of theft or embezzlement. But not knowing what rules applied concerning apprentices, guild dues, or royal tithes, she also wanted to make sure Milton would be allowed to keep at least a substantial portion of what she gave him.
"Yes. That is correct."
"Excellent. In that case, I see no reason to detain you."
She turned to the ship and yelled up the ramp. "Sims, bring down the funding we promised for the sewer project."
A moment later, the three maintenance drones, laden with treasure, emerged from the ship and marched single file down the ramp. Ferman's eyes widened as they unloaded the booty into the cart, and his jaw dropped when they returned with a second load.
"This is really most generous," he finally managed to say. "So, I take it you will be leaving us soon?" He did not sound eager for her to say yes, exactly, but she did get the impression that he would not regret their departure.
"Just a moment, if I may," Doc said. "I'd like to talk with Milton for a moment."
"Oh, certainly," Ferman said. "Fond farewells and all that, I imagine."
Milton, clutching the bag Lisa gave him to his chest, looked at Doc. "Thank you. Thank you all," the apprentice said tearfully.
"Is that enough for you and your young lady?" Doc asked him.
"More than enough, I should think, especially now that I have a steady paying job."
Ferman smiled. "Milton is our new employee relations manager for the division of the guild in charge of the sewer project."
"I don't see how Mari's father can possibly object to you now," Sandra said. "You're practically a businessman."
He gave her a weak smile. "I don't think he will any longer."
"You still seem concerned about something," Doc said. "Or am I mistaken?"
"I am, a bit," he said. "It's about the orcs. We've gotten a lot of things sorted out. There's a warehouse outside the walls that we're converting into barracks for them, which should do for now, and we're putting together project ideas and work plans—but, well, I'm afraid they'll get bored. Gorbo likes to be busy, but I'm not sure we can keep them all busy all the time. I'm worried that we may not be able to keep them out of trouble when they're not, and the first time one causes trouble, well, we're going to have trouble, if you see what I mean."
"I'm sure there are all sorts of jobs they can do," Sandra said. "They’re not stupid…. Well, maybe they are, but they can haul and clean and chop and dig."
"I thought about that, and we're going to have them help rebuild the town outside the walls, but they can't be working all the time. I mean, Gorbo doesn't. He has hobbies."
"Oh, you mean you want to make sure they're entertained during their time off. That's easy. Just give them something to watch. Set up shows and sports teams. They don't even have to have a plot or anything like that. When I was in the orc camp, I heard a couple orcs talking about watching someone dig a hole. It really doesn't matter what it is. If you call it entertainment, I'm sure they'll sit and watch it. I can't say I understand why, but it works with many people in my world. I can't imagine the orcs are any harder to amuse than they are."
"That's brilliant! Sports teams, races, cooking demonstrations, log-sawing contests…. Yes, I think that will work. Thank you."
"My pleasure."
Doc placed a hand on Milton's shoulder. "The important thing, I think, is to give the orcs something to be other than monsters. Give them a constructive purpose and a backstory. They may surprise you."
"That's what I'm trying to avoid."
"I meant in a good way."