The Nexus Coalition council meeting was in its fourth hour. The topic of debate was a tariff dispute between the Dwarven mining guilds and Gorok's interstellar trade syndicate.
Borin Ironhand slammed a thick, calloused hand on the table. The stone vibrated.
"His syndicate undercuts our prices at every turn! They use non-unionized goblin labor and portal-based logistics. We cannot compete!"
Gorok, seated opposite, examined his fingernails with an air of profound boredom. 'The predictable outrage of a protectionist economy,' he thought. 'They resist efficiency because they fear obsolescence.'
"My dear Borin," Gorok said, his voice smooth and reasonable. "The market dictates the price. If your guilds cannot produce refined ore at a competitive rate, that is a failure of your business model, not a crime of my syndicate."
"It is a crime against the working Dwarf!"
