Shoshone Station: The Galactic Consortium season 2

Episode 8: The Sting #3

"I'm glad you could see me on such short notice," Fox said as he entered Shannon Otterdance's office. "I'm sure you're busy."

Shannon gave him a look. He startled. He had thought he was on good terms with her. What had he done?

"That's fine. I am always happy to talk to station security," she said. She didn't seem that happy.

"Captain Lannister wanted me to find out—"

"How I feel about prostitution," Shannon finished for him. "Karana spoke to me already. Your captain refused to discuss a business license for a brothel on 15 below."

"And he's curious how the collective feels, because—"

"If we agreed to rent the space, it would be our jurisdiction, not your captain's, or so Karana thinks. I'm not sure."

"If history teaches us anything," Fox said, "it's that promises of sovereignty for native lands is rarely honored in practice. Whether it will work out that way here is anyone's guess. Lannister is simply curious how you feel, whether you are likely to challenge his decision or—"

She cut him off again. "I'm tempted to agree with Karana, just to find out. Are we really independent here? Or is this just a more high-tech sort of reservation?"

"Almost the entire collective has jobs already, doing something. Earning money. We've not had any issues with drugs since the first few days."

"It's a much nicer cage. I get that."

"Lannister said you had sided with Karana on several issues recently."

"Minor things," Shannon deflected. "And no, I'm not his lackey, any more than I'm Lannister's. Import restrictions, food standards . . . it made sense; that's all. The Consortium standards are stronger, better. Of course, we should follow them."

"And this is a very different sort of issue," Fox said.

"Much more complicated, unfortunately. I've always been an activist on women's issues. I've fought trafficking on the surface for years, forcing our girls into prostitution, drugs. It's shameful."

"Then it seems—"

"We had a few problems with that early on too," she interrupted. "Prostitution."

"Yeah, a few girls. Mostly habits from the surface, you know. I think most of them were given a fine for 'unlicensed service' and given job counseling. They are now productive members of the station."

"Not all of them."

Fox's brow furrowed. "But . . . I mean, we can't really do anything unless someone complains, but we've always responded to such complaints quickly. Do you think it's still a problem?"

"Not in that way." Shannon lifted a picture frame from her desk. "My granddaughter." She held the picture out to Fox. "And three others. She was a good kid. Never into drugs. No one ever raised a hand to her. I was shocked when she was busted. Shocked."

Fox hadn't realized that Shannon's own granddaughter had been involved in the trade. "How is she doing now?"

Shannon snorted. "Job counseling. We hoped they'd offer her something better."

"And?"

"She took the exam. 'Fits the psychological profile,' they said. Left for Saras a few months ago, for the service academy there."

Fox just stared at her. "Your granddaughter is in training to be a prostitute?"

Shannon nodded. "Can't say I'm thrilled, or I wasn't. She talks about it when she comes home to visit like it's something a normal person might choose to do."

"It's perceived very differently in Consortium culture. They're trained, and like you say, they only train those who fit a certain psychological profile. The people who go into the profession have plenty of other options if they choose not to live that life."

"It's hard," Shannon admitted, "for someone my age, someone who has spent so many years dealing with the way it is on the surface, to even wrap my head around this. That she or the others—about three or four passed the psych exam and have sought the required training—would choose this of their own free will. But, for others in the collective, it's a much simpler matter."

"Hosting a brothel would mean making a profit," Fox guessed, "just like a casino on the surface."

"And give our girls a place to work if and when they come back from training."

"Crap," Fox muttered.

"I wish there was some sort of compromise on this," Shannon said. "I'm personally very conflicted about the whole issue."

Fox nodded, dropping his head for a brief moment. "I am too. Well, thank you for your time. I'll let Lannister know."