Guiding Frond was the Port Ministry representative treating with Pylo.

As far as Pylo could tell she was a member of the most prominent and politically positioned demographics of Red Weed.

This was more or less completely normal, Pylo had seen it in many places and was not very surprised.

The most numerous people (if by a slim margin) of Red Weed called themselves The Stalwart in a archaic dialect mostly unused for anything but a few words and scientific literature. As with all people across the reef this was a bit more specific in use and the meaning of one particular variant of the word (a collection of bioluminescence in mid and long light wavelengths) had been almost completely subsumed to just mean precisely the people themselves.

But in the end that is what the meaning at its driest and most clinical meant.

The Stalwart/People.

Again this did not seem particularly strange to Pylo. Perfectly normal naming scheme to encounter with a species of civilization builders as were appropriate for a trade port.

Red Weed had been settled here in the void left by the last extinction level catastrophe. Pylo vaguely recalled something had collapsed the local confluence of trade and political power and that had lead to all the surrounding habitats falling apart in turn but the specifics were lost on her.

The locals of Red Weed had even more fragmentary and less precise records. The events of Red Weed’s founding and the preceding origins of their people were not common knowledge as far as Pylo could determine although she suspected her sisters would have found some obscure historian with it somehow.

Busybodies her sisters were.

Still, this was standard local time blindness, annoying but perfectly normal. Practically as daft as the Terrans.

Whatever the case what was presently true is that the Stalwart People were the primary population group and was widely believed to have been the founding one.

So they were over represented in all positions across the habitat. Even in positions where their personal expertise and specialties were in Pylo’s opinion poorly suited.

And if that had been the end of her investigations she might have come into this trade deal expecting a very standoffish and difficult to budge negotiator in Guiding Frond. Someone who would be ruthless perhaps or at least implacable in their assurance of being right. Or maybe one who is suspicious of the outsiders and has been bent to the pressures of trade with beings beyond their world.

Pylo however had listened and read plenty of records and popular media on the way in. She swallowed and drank the stuff on every approach as one of her responsibilities as the face and voice of Tunie.

She understood that while the simple dry name meant Stalwart there was other meanings in the culture. The common stereotype that was spoken and reinforced across Red Weed until the assumption was deep in every population center and habitat across the port and the surrounding farming communities was that the core population of Red Weed were friendly.

Incredibly, amicably and wonderfully friendly and supportive!

Not as a posturing or lie, not as propaganda for control!

The main population of Red Weed were genuinely sincere in their good will!

Which meant that she had come prepared for cordiality, politeness, perhaps a few gifts or good will garnering.

But The Stalwart, or at least Guiding Frond were a lot more intense then that.

In fact Pylo suspected that if this was how the species acted in general it was only by sheer numbers and their position as the literal heart of the habitat infrastructure that the Stalwart were still the primary demographic in positions of power.

Because while they were friendly, and naturally very bright as any proper people had to be within their niche.

The Stalwart unfortunately had those areas they were less than capable in.

And it almost made Pylo feel bad as a trader with them. Well less so with her and more with the habitat as a whole and its dealing with less scrupulous traders.

To cut to the fruit of the matter it was such:

Guiding Frond was a terrible haggler.

Inexperienced and infantile in her understanding of subterfuge and hidden agendas.

Crude and blatantly obvious in her dealings and desires.

But also sincere, almost naively earnest in making sure all parties ended better off for the exchange.

“No no I must insist that the poor stricken traveler Pylo and her ship the Tunie is given feeds for her journeys! And then the traveler will give us the stock materials and raw grists the traveler has in abundances!”

Pylo had never traded with Red Weed before. She had never traded with most places before, and when she did get the opportunity the time between made each of them new anyway.

But even then this was absurdly weird.

Offers to beget a child with the locals?

Sirens had a reputation, totally understandable.

Attempts to steal Tunie in one way or another?

Tunie was great and locals were trapped waiting to die on hunks of the reef. Pylo could relate.

Things looking friendly as can be but actually being a front for manipulating a trade ship into another position?

Locals tried it all the time, sometimes they even manage to fool Pylo!

But as far as she can tell and checking with the other traders and the general population?

Red Weed (Guiding Frond in particular) was really just that friendly.

And that was a bit a of a problem.

Pylo was really worried about the viability of this habitat. How do they manage to keep it all going when they act like this?

“Uh, that is very generous of you-”

“Oh Praise to you... It was very nice of you to notice! But please do not be over indulgent to me! This is serious exchanges and business. Do not falter to your Siren ways, we need no cajoling or propositioning. Just facts.”

Okay that was a bit rude.

“I’m actually not interested, but do you deal with sirens often? I didn't hear of any local families.”

“There are many families here, but ah! no... nothing like the clans we hear about beyond our little knot of the reef... just small little families and individuals. They are very helpful!”

Pylo ruffled her anterior texture a bit in a manner that suggested puzzled bemusement for the local.

“Well I suppose that’s ... fine... anyway I have not even managed to go over my full catalogue of archaeological artefacts, records and archives. I know the official authorities of the port were interested in making sure that my grist holds were full and that I was able to give what I had in abundance but there are many minute and individual pieces that might be of interest to singular buyers? What is the legal ramifications I need to adhere for those exchanges? Contraband or taboo? There was not a lot of those listed in the outgoing signals and I had not heard specifics from the other traders”

It was actually not just that they were an easy target for exploiting. Although Pylo had come to realize that there were several ways one could simply take advantage of their kindness by organizing to be ‘in need’ honestly that would easily drain the habitat dry.

Of course that method would be very risky and complicated to arrange such a coup. The Port Ministry was very shrewd and very canny to tricks and subterfuge at least, just really blunt about it.

“You would need to check with the department of needs and means for anything of significant value that we are not exchanging here for the good of the world of Red Weed. If you can find one who has need of it I am sure a proper exchange can be arranged with investigation.”

Also the deal WAS very equitable! Pylo felt like she was making out a lot from it, the raw amount of grist that it took to feed Tunie let alone make sure she was extra fattened to spare was incredibly vast.

“Ah I see do you have a contact for that department? Or a bazaar or local meeting place for those seeking to trade for me to officially barter at?”

But at the same time the entire discussion had circled around a dozen times and still the actual prices, exchange rates and even exact quantities of resources being given to Pylo and received at the Port were simply not changing.

“Each loop of Redweed and the principalities within maintain a local department of means and needs enacted as the population finds best. Their requests for anything large scale moves through the Port Ministry and my and others offices... We apologize it is not more efficient but the sheer scale of our world demands a more individualized approach. You understand?”

Well the prices did not shift beyond a few shifts in her favor when Pylo found herself caught in accidentally revealing her operational costs and how short staffed (singular) Tunie’s crew was. But instead of pressing for advantage out of gaining from her desperation that apparently actually got Pylo a discount?!

It reminded Pylo a bit of dealing with her family honestly.

Which was rather unnerving all told.

“Ah yes, lots of people, too many to manage all in one system. Split up the method and organize folk how and where they like? I’ve seen a few places like that when populations get big. It can go kind of sour if you lot are not careful. You haven’t started grooming a prophet have you? Those are really dangerous, I can’t recommend it.”

Guiding Frond rattled parts of herself together in a way that probably would have made pressure waves if they were discussing this in a medium for it.

“We’ve had the discussion brought up, but the Council of United Polis and the many Ministries of Service, Health, Immigration and External Affairs have so far agreed with you on the danger. Maybe at the next assembly they will say otherwise... In that event I will pass on your sentiment to my collaborators in the Port Ministry. Praise you!”

It was strange for Pylo to try and negotiate like this.

But then again that is what Red Weed’s entire sociosphere seemed to have grown up around.

The earnest friendliness of the Stalwart People.

Also it helped that the majority of their populations’ comfortable habitat conditions gave off enough waste heat to power most everyone else’s power needs.

“Well I figure we have actually gone over the exchange quite pleasantly Port Minister Guiding Frond. Now then... I do have some other business I wished to exchange with you... My journeys have found me with passengers who would like to visit and explore while we are loading and unloading Tunie. However I have maintenance works I must attend too and they are not experienced in foreign cultures, languages or even trade and quite fragile to conventional environments I was wondering if-”

There was an ecstatic widening and flaring out in Guiding Frond’s ‘foremost’ segment away from their perch.

“Certainly! I will send a contact from the local enclave of the Ministry of Foreigners and the Ministry of Health to oversee their well being! Praise you for bringing this to our attention so that we can ensure their well being, Praise!”

Pylo fluttered her surfaces in puzzled bafflement again.

“No charge? I was preparing to pay for the trouble as needed.”

Guiding Frond rattled again silently in the vacuum.

“Of course not, we are both intelligent peoples on the world. Why would we take or give more than the need? Do not be concerned we are happy to help! Praise you!”

Pylo once again wondered how this place had survived this long.