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"Dig just a little bit deeper. Work just a little bit harder.
And don't get weary! Remember this is personal!"
- Debbie Wasserman Schultz

Veruca Salt - Volcano Girls

Jeremiah Withers is not the sort of person you keep waiting. Undersecretary to the UCAS Ambassador (the fancy title the UCAS gives its council representative Jeremy Falloon), he's a very important man, and very important men don't like to be kept waiting. Neither do bureaucrats, because most bureaucrats secretly believe that they're the most important man in the world, and if they have one iota of power, they'll wield it like a sword to cow those who oppose them.

Another of the funny things about bureaucrats is that they're almost impossible to get fired. You can get them a slap on the wrist, even a talking to, but never removed. If you really want to get rid of a bureaucrat, get them promoted. It seems counter-intuitive, but it's true.

But I was talking about Jeremiah Withers. He's nine-parts bureaucrat, one part politician, and screwed nine ways to Sunday. He was in some big scandal in DeeCee, nothing you know anything about, aside from knowing there's a scandal. It got him banished, although it was probably called a promotion on paper. He has his tiny fiefdom, and he's not going to let anyone take it from him. What is his fiefdom, you might ask? As well you should- he's been tasked by the Council with maintaining sewer lining between the different zones, keeping them running and clear or rodents.

The commlink buzzes again, the second ring. He might be calling to cancel your contract. There are a number of no-bid contracts up for renewal, and whoever gives Withers the biggest kickback gets them, hook line and sinker. You can't compete with ARES Firewatch or even one of the A-rated Corps, not with the kind of pull and resources they've got. Or he could be calling you in to cover an infestation that's not currently being treated- the contracts allow him to do this as a public service if he becomes aware of a lapse, calling anyone in and billing it to the responsible corporation. That means top dollar, a friend at the top, and a nameless faceless enemy gunning for you.

Your commlink buzzes again.