[i][right][sub]Addressing: [@Raylah][/sub][/right][/i]

Oh, why, oh why couldn't they install a holographic bartender? The ECU uses holograms for everything these days. Back home, they're replacing social workers and servants by the millions. But no, no, up here in space, it has to be [i]authentic[/i].

Hans watches helplessly as a half-dozen already buzzed soldiers pour into his bar faster than whiskey. He starts to sigh, but before the breath can get halfway out, another half-dozen follow them. But this time, moving a little more like wine. (He's been working such long shifts lately, it's impossible not to think in terms of alcohol any more.)

"Whaddya got?" one leans his sweaty arm against Hans' clean bar table without asking. "Hey, I said whaddya got?"

Not enough pay to deal with this, that's what. He'd quit, but any other job would be the same; Oligarchs have a way of ending up in charge of all the businesses. The ECU is technically capitalist, but Hans has learned, you need 'noocratic permission' to use any of the recycled Bezian resources, or anything from the freshly terraformed land. Together, those two happen to comprise 100% percent of available resources on New Hollywood. So without permission from a high-up Oligarch, there's just no way to start up a new business on your own- and then you end up working on a bar in the backend of the Sol system with a bunch of foreign soldiers looking like they wanna wreck all your hard work cleaning it up.

"Mate," Hans smiles, adopting his personal favorite Old Australian accent, "we have about every drink you could ever want for. 16th Century Italian Champagne, 20th American Moonshine- not for the faint- an imitation of Roman Empire spirits, English Beer..."

[center][b]~~~~~~~~[/b][/center]
[i][right][sub]Starring: Martina[/sub][/right][/i]

"So what do you... believe?"

"Many things. Our predecessors, perhaps in too many things."

"What do you mean?"

"The early Mixtists, you know, their name comes from an Old English word, 'mix.' They accepted almost every Old Earth faith as true in some sense or some other, and tried to smash them all together. This is what made the Noocracy angry with them. Made them chase us out of the cities. Earth religion never had such a unity, so the ECU will not accept it now."

"But why? Isn't unity good?"

"Maybe. But New Hollywood will not have a thing which Earth didn't have. But besides, back when I was still young, we were... over-enthusiastic. Living out in these ruins has made us more discriminating. Perhaps every faith does have some echo of the Truth. But- [i]but[/i]- there can still only be one Truth. It is our mission to find it."

"Oh."

"Yes."

"...Can I join you?"

The old woman looks at Martina Ward fully in the eyes, not for the first time since they've sat around this flickering fire. "Of course you can, dear."