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The Baron and his Chief Engineer huddled over the map. The Engineer grunted, "Politics! I'll never understand it! Why people will ignore two perfectly good passes makes no sense. Black Pass isn't really a pass, it's just a not-a-peak. Baron, the extra expense is not just laying the track, it's going to take more engines to pull loads over that grade, bad weather will close that pass a lot more easily, and the rock over that route is rotten. It may be a nice symbol of compromise, but it's really bad railroad engineering."
"Do you have a quote from Porter on his estimate of the extra cost?" asked the Baron.
"I'll meet with his engineer this afternoon."
"Then can you make a presentation to the board tomorrow morning?"
"No problem. Heck, I could do it right now, the land is not going to change, no matter what Mr. Porter's engineer says. But I'm happy to hear him out, first.
*****
The next day at the Board meeting
"... and so, gentlemen, while there will be some extra cost, I see nothing inherently wrong with the Black Pass proposal. Thank you." the Chief Engineer stood with a smile of satisfaction on his face that said he was proud of what he was saying. All through the presentation he had said that here was a case where politics and engineering were marching to the same drummer, and he felt very good about it.
"Thank you, Chief Engineer." said the Chairman.
"Baron... Baron... excuse me. Your Chief Engineer has finished." The Chairman smiled tolerantly. The Baron had a reputation as a drowser and daydreamer at meetings such as these. He rarely seemed to miss anything, though, and it was his money that was usually at stake, so his associates politely tolerated his mind flights to other realms.
In fact, the Baron's mind was flying into other realms. His awareness would slip into the Ethereal Plane to watch the meetings from there. There he could study men's souls directly as the meeting progressed. He could see what their bodies' were masking.
In this meeting the Baron was lucky. The Chief Engineer was thorough, not subtle. It was clear two paragraphs into his report that something had changed his mind. The Baron quickly slipped to viewing this situation ethereally. The Chief Engineer's soul was glowing, he was truly convinced of what he was saying. But was that glow natural? While he finished his report the Baron studied the other board members. Two of the seven were warm with agreement, and a third was hot over a congruence of reason and profit: the Baron heard that last week this board member had accepted a consulting position with a Kalnichov company. The souls of the other three, including the chairman, were cool -- they kept their own council.
Many things happen on the Ethereal Plane that are invisible to humans. For the Baron, watching the ethereal was often light entertainment. But as he was studying the men in the room, he noticed that a little imp was hanging around the meeting, too. Most people don't notice imps, of course, they are usually non-corperal, and invisible to those who don't possess the skill to penetrate their inherent invisibility. The Baron can see them, but they are as much a part of the natural world as mosquitos -- so they are rarely worthy of more than passing notice. The Baron had seen the imp come in behind the Chief Engineer, mocking his ungainly gate, and now he was staying.
Imps are free-spirited as well as invisible. His coming was no surprise, but they rarely stay in one place long. They will look for mischief to do, then be on their way. His staying this long was out of character. Not only that, during the meeting he was jumping on the Engineer's shoulder and whispering to him. After giving all that attention to the Engineer, he stayed when the Engineer left... as if... as if he were waiting here for someone!
The Chairman was speaking, "Gentlemen, this is an encouraging development, indeed. We have the opportunity here to make a social difference as well as an economic difference. This valley of the Kalnichovs and the Rostovs has been split too long..."
What was happening was not clear, but it was clear the Baron needed time to find out. He studied the map of the railroad line once more.
"If there are no more questions, lets..."
"Excuse me Mr. Chairman," said the Baron, "but I propose tabling this matter until next week."
"Why is that, Baron Rostov?" said the Chairman.
"We should consult with the church, first." replied the Baron.
The Chairman looked at him quizzically. The Baron put his finger to the map.
"There is a church on the south fork of Black Pass Creek. It's probably not an issue since the proposed line will run along the north fork, but lets confirm that before we confirm this choice."
"We need to make a choice soon. Is this delay really necessary? We have a final speaker I was about to introduce, Mr...."
"Yes, Mr. Johanne Porter, I presume. No, I'm afraid I don't have time to meet with Mr. Porter right now. However, I will investigate this matter with the church personally, and report to the board next week."
"Very well, all in favor of tabling this matter until next week, at the Baron's request?"
In spite of the Baron's reputation and previous support for this project, the vote was only four to three in his favor. This Johanne Porter, or whoever was pulling the strings behind him, had already laid a strong foundation. As the Baron walked out of the meeting, he felt that the little red flag in his mind signaling trouble had turned into a very large banner.
The imp watched him go.
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