Editors Note: The following work is a short piece of fiction, and any resemblance to any entity or group is incidental and unintentional.
“Business is good,” the sales manager told me as we looked out on the showroom where dozens of capitals floated on tether. “We’ve seen a boost since refineries came online. Seems the smaller outfits like renting better than buying, so we’ve been moving a lot more tonnage since late summer.”
Raton Nahtahn is in his mid-thirties, with thinning blond hair and a wispy mustache. He’s been sales manager of the capital rental dealership for a little over six months. “I was a corp CEO prior to joining Caps R Us (CRS) in June,” he explained. The growing dealership offers capitals, super caps, and titans.
Leaving his corp was difficult but he knew that the future lay in expanding the capital market and rentals seemed like a fast way to do that. “I’d played nanny to my corp mates for long enough,” he admitted. “They’ll have to figure out how to be successful on their own while I make a killing doing this.”
CRS operates two showrooms, one a few jumps from Jita where we met recently, and another in an undisclosed location in null. Rental rates are high, but still markedly lower than what someone would pay to buy outright. Pilots can take a cap out for a spin for as little as a day, or as long as 30 days. There’s also a rent-to-buy option. Asked how his company handled caps just flying off and never being seen again, Nahtahn said CRS had security measures in place to make that unlikely. Pressed for details he said it involved a long lasting booster that tracked the user’s whereabouts. A complicated agreement with Pend Insurance covers losses due to battles. Renters can also protect themselves from ‘stupidity’ for a few more isk.
“We’re open seven days a week,” Rahtahn said. “Stop by and take a look.”
