Blackstone Code-Chapter 671: Changing Winds
The election comes before everything else.
The President now looked at others differently—more reflective of his own stance and values.
Everyone knew what kind of president the public wanted, but some things were not so easy to achieve.
People needed jobs, housing, education, healthcare—they needed everything. They were like greedy hatchlings, mouths wide open, expecting something for nothing.
Some things could be given to them—jobs, cheap entertainment to numb and pacify the lower classes: a sofa, junk food, lowbrow TV. These were easy.
But some things could not be given—like true fairness and justice. Not because these things were impossible, but because the public lacked the ability to handle them.
Why should a billionaire capitalist who works hard every day be treated the same as a lazy slob who lounges on a couch, eating chips and yelling at the TV, when talking about fairness?
What couldn’t be given must never be given. But what could be given, should be doubled—like a sense of national pride or a false sense of involvement in major societal events.
The public needed a good president, not a cold one. In some ways, the Federation’s election system was a massive placebo for society as a whole.
Yet the lower class was massive, and their choices could impact the upper tiers.
The President looked around and coughed lightly:
“Gentlemen, we have seventy-two hours to deal with this. The Cabinet or Security Council will form a dedicated task force.”
“Our position should be one of non-compromise, but we must also consider the lives of the hostages. We must show both the resolve to defend our authority and respect for life.”
He stood up. “I’ll be keeping a close eye on this. Inform me immediately of any new developments.”
He glanced at Mr. Truman. “I have another meeting coming up. You all continue the discussion.”
With that, the President left the room, leaving the others exchanging uneasy glances.
Normally, the Security Council would’ve already stepped in to take control. But this time, its representatives remained silent. It was clearly a troublesome matter.
The President had just walked away without a second thought.
“Ahem… I have a suggestion,” said Mr. Truman. “We can raise the money while also working through certain channels to find out where these pirates are hiding.”
“They’ve exposed quite a lot of information. I believe our intelligence experts can extract valuable clues from the chaos.”
“And if we still can’t locate them, we can use the ransom payment to lure them out—then eliminate them.”
“That’s just my humble opinion. I hope it’s helpful.”
Eventually, after some back-and-forth, a joint task force was formed by the Ministry of Defense and the Security Council to handle the situation.
Considering political and public pressure, the task force decided to make their investigation progress public—not only to show they weren’t ignoring the situation, but also to send a message to the pirates.
The investigators believed that some of the pirates were likely on Federation soil, watching events unfold.
Being too aggressive at the outset might backfire. But if they pretended to negotiate by preparing the ransom, they might draw out information that could aid the investigation.
But the question remained—who would pay?
An hour later, everyone involved was summoned to a Ministry of Defense conference room to discuss who would cover the 16 million.
The situation was awkward for some.
The power generator manufacturers and the shipping company were both subsidiaries of the Merrick Consortium. No matter who paid, the money would ultimately affect the group’s balance sheet.
This wasn’t good news. Rather than a discussion about who should pay, the task force was essentially demanding the group hand over the money.
“We suspect some pirate informants are within the Federation, monitoring our progress. We need to project the willingness to pay ransom,” explained a task force expert.
“If they see the money, they’ll definitely relay that info back. Then we’ll have a way to track them.”
The broadcasting company president looked annoyed, flipping a lighter in his hand.
“The Federation’s huge. They could send messages from anywhere. What makes you think you can track them?”
“I think launching a large-scale manhunt is more effective. We need to show strength, let the pirates know we won’t negotiate. They might release the crew on their own.”
The officials in the room looked at him like he was an idiot. Everyone knew: if negotiations failed and ransom was ruled out, the pirates would absolutely kill the hostages.
Then the blame would shift from the companies to the government. People would die, the pirates would escape, and the government would be branded useless.
Don’t underestimate the public. For them, criticizing the government was the ultimate political correctness.
On the other hand, if the hostages weren’t rescued but a ransom was paid, the public would at least feel comforted. It would reinforce the idea that citizens’ lives were valuable—after all, even common sailors were worth 16 million.
The task force expert added, “Using postmarks and postal times from the Federation Post, we believe there’s a high probability the source is in Eminence. If we monitor communications and ports there, we may find something.”
With that, the shipping company president glanced at the generator manufacturer beside him and said to the task force, “We’ll need to discuss this.”
The expert agreed—they, too, needed to work out details.
Once the task force left, the shipping company president picked up the phone and joined a board meeting.
“The government’s not taking our suggestions. Looks like we’ll have to cough up the 16 million.”
This was expected. The board had instructed him to object just to try it out.
Technically, they could refuse. But doing so would damage the group’s image. If opportunists took advantage and stirred up public anger, stock prices across their companies could fall.
For a publicly traded company, even a 1% fluctuation could mean hundreds of thousands or millions in losses.
After a brief silence, a voice came through the line:
“If we’re paying, we’re not covering the full amount.”
“The government is responsible, too. It’s their country, their jurisdiction. They need to contribute. Also, talk to Soren—he’s involved, too.”
There was no more talk of avoiding payment. The company was about to issue bonds. If they angered the government now, even a minor delay could cost them the perfect opportunity.
Once the government made it clear that payment was necessary, the board quickly gave in.
“We’ll contribute, but no more than 50%. That’s 8 million.”
“And if Soren refuses, tell him we’ll deduct his share from future payments—as if we’re giving him a discount.”
With the board’s final decision, a new round of negotiations began quickly.
Although Soren felt his involvement was completely baffling, he more or less understood the Merrick Consortium’s intentions—the money was still coming from them. It wasn’t really ransom, but an advance payment for future shipments.
Thinking of it that way, the 16 million didn’t seem so outrageous. It was just 1,600 stacks of cash. One of the large secure transport cases banks use for moving money could hold 2 million at once. All of it would fit into just eight cases.
It didn’t look like much, but it still made the heart race and blood surge.
The entire fundraising process was broadcast live on TV. Many citizens held their breath watching that much money gathered in one place.
This was nothing like Lynch’s 10 billion. His billions were in Valier—now worthless like scrap paper. Anyone could scrape together 10 billion Valier with just a bit of cash.
But this was Federation Sols—16 million of them. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚
At the same time, it sparked a realization in many: kidnapping was insanely profitable.
And just like that, public opinion began to shift. The criticism wasn’t directed at the pirates or the capitalists—it was aimed at the military.
“How can our military defeat the Gephra Navy, but be completely powerless against a bunch of pirates?”
