A Havenworld, a resort planet very popular with the extremely rich, an Alliance world, is opening its doors to thousands of homeless Deregger refugees. The Deregger CEO's laugh, thinking the Alliance wealthy are about sue the CRC into oblivion. They're shocked when the wealthy in the Alliance offer funds to help those in need. -- The New Guy
An incontrovertible law of the space-traveling universe is: Always answer a distress call, for the distress in question may one day be yours. Even Dereggers obey it. Even Deregger resort worlds acquiesce to the law.
They all learned after the third time the CRC Enforcers turned up.
The emergency was large, and had a great many survivors. All of whom needed the nearest facilities for shelter and succor. They needed places to stay until the Alliance could fabricate suitable habitats on another world, or even another station. That and the medical intervention necessary was going to take months.
No Deregger was going to let that past without a price.
Since it was a resort planet, and the customers were the ones who had the most money, the corporation running the place began racking up a tab.
They charged for the rooms. They charged for the use of spaces that had to be converted into emergency hospitals and surgeries. They charged for every drop of water that the refugees used. They charged for laundry. They certainly overcharged for meals. When the Alliance brought in rations of Nutri-Food, they charged import and shipping taxes.
They charged, as some Humans were wont to say, like a wounded buffalo.
And then they tried to make the individual refugees responsible for the debt.
They did not expect what happened next.
Alliance corporations, Alliance citizens, Alliance clubs, all pitched together to send the refugees the funds necessary to pay for their needs. On interest-free loans. No gatekeeping, no assessments, no threats. No expectations.
One by one, the refugees sought out the mutual fund. One by one they paid their debts in full, and then moved off to their new homes.
The CRC decided to let the Dereggers squabble over who was more entitled to the profits. They would step in to help those torn by the inevitable war.
Free of charge.
[Photo by Datingscout on Unsplash]
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