“Hello, kiddos, thank you all for coming here today!”
Litvir was in a cheerful mood as he watched everyone find their seats and sit down. The classroom hadn’t been used for a while, because the Decaylings were no longer Decaylings, they had graduated and were now officially Decay Lords.
“Hello, brother, why have you called us all here?” Kuta quickly asked. They were a tad annoyed, mostly since this meeting was getting in the way of Kuta’s shift on telepathic pacifying duties.
“Why did you just call Litvir your brother?” Tanos immediately also asked.
Kuta grunted. “Litvir calls himself he, it is more correct to call him my brother than my sibling.”
“You can call me sibling, if you wish!” Litvir smiled. After grabbing some paper off the desk, he wandered across the classroom, handing out envelopes, all of which were named.
“So why are we here?” Nyssi asked the question again. “And what are these?”
“These,” Litvir explained, “are envelopes with important information inside. As you are now Decay Lords, you get a Deathven-Sponsored Income, also occasionally called a Periuniversal Basic Income. While larger and more important things, like fuel and food, are somewhat paid for already, the Deathven-Sponsored Income is there to cover less important things. Things like new armour, weaponry and, if you save up, your own ship.
“Now, before-” Litvir paused. Phovoula and Kuta were both whispering in annoyance, and Talok looked very confused. For a moment, Litvir felt like something like this had happened before, but he quickly decided to sort the problem out. “Talok, little one, please pay attention.”
“But mister Litvir, I have a question!”
“I know you do, dear, but the contents of these envelopes, namely the last two pages, they need to kept secret.”
“But why?”
“Because if you show those papers to someone else, they may steal your money.”
“Hey, Talok!” Tanos butted in. “That envelope contains your wages, just like when you were a gladiator. Right, mister Litvir?”
Litvir nodded. “Exactly like that, just on a bigger scale. However, what you are given is based on many different factors, including quite a few not even Vikalos understands. Inside then envelopes are three sheets of paper. The first sheet of paper is an explanation of the Deathven-Sponsored Income that you are receiving.
“The second sheet contains the information to your newly made bank account, and what is required to access your money. There is a small, plastic card on that page too, which you will need to sign your name on.
“Lastly, the third sheet is your balance sheet. For now, your bank account will only have your first 4-ev of sponsored income, alongside any small bonuses you may have earned. At the bottom of the last sheet, it will show you how much you can expect to receive every 4-ev from now on. As I just said to Talok, please keep all this information secret. I do not want to hear any of you complaining someone stole your info.”
Litvir wandered around some more, handed an envelope to Thassalin, then paused. He glanced across the classroom and quickly realized he had three extra envelopes. One of which was addressed to him.
“Mister Litvir, why are you confused?” Talok asked.
Litvir shrugged. There was no harm in telling, but at the same time, Litvir felt that something like this had happened before. He shrugged off the confusion and answered Talok’s question. “Occasionally, your Deathven-Sponsored Income is increased or decreased based on activity. Whenever that happens, you get a new letter stating what your new 4-ev amount is.”
“And I assume you and Retvik are getting pay rises?” Kuta tutted.
“Do not be like that!” Litvir tutted back. “Mine and Retvik’s income has been below the minimum amount for nearly three years now.”
“How comes?”
“I do not know.” With a sigh, Litvir made his way back to the front. “You can now open your envelopes.”
Everyone did as they were told, but after a moment, Kayel raised his hand.
“What is your question, Kayel?”
“Um… I just wanted to know, can we discuss our wages?”
Litvir smiled a little. “Of course you can. Just make sure to keep your access information secret.”
“Ah, cool, alrighty…” Kayel shrugged. “Quick question, what is a good wage?”
“The average is eight thousand Deathvenbucks every 4-ev.”
“Huh…” Kayel looked back at his balance. “Are you sure you didn’t mean forty thousand?”
“No, I said four thousand.”
Kayel blinked, then turned to his buddies. “Nyssi, Tenuk, Ret, do all three of you have thirty thousand per 4-ev as well? And do you all have a one-off payment of ten thousand as an apology for sedating us and sticking us in glass tubes?”
All three of them nodded. Thassalin decided to throw in his wages too.
“Because I am an old Time Drake, I am getting thirty thousand too. But I haven’t received the bonus you four got.”
“And… I am getting…” Phovoula glanced around the room. “I’m getting… a… a lot.”
“How much?”
“Fifty thousand, plus, according to this, an extra ten thousand as compensation for drugging me.”
“Well this is absolute piss!” Kuta snapped. “Why are Talok and I only getting eight thousand a 4-ev?”
“Because you are a normal Decayon…” Litvir muttered as he opened one of the three extra envelopes, one of which had Litvir’s name on it. Litvir decided to be naughty and open all three envelopes and have a peek. “Huh. Arkay got a massive pay cut and Retvik and I are now getting four thousand five hundred…”
Everyone suddenly turned to Litvir.
“Dude!” Kayel exclaimed. “You’re getting less than us?”
Litvir frowned, then nodded. “Indeed. Deathven has a grudge against both the Tattered three and us three Missing. But it is nice getting six thousand Deathvenbucks extra now, especially since Retvik and I lead the Thantir AND are recognized as a Hidden Trio. Arkay though is going to be a bit miffed when he sees that his wages have been cut in half because he was inactive and not considered alive for a long time.”
“That is unfair…” Kuta also frowned. “You deserve at least the same that Talok and I get.”
“Yes, I know…” Litvir trailed off for a moment, then sighed. “I shall leave you all to it now, I have work to do. Have a think about anything you wish to buy, and I will arrange a trip to the mall or something. See you later, little ones…”