Petr Hrubý was 10 years old the first time he realised what life likely had in store for him. His father, Milan, came home from his shift at the VýchodSolná Těžba-owned salt mine. A representative from the Company was waiting for him. Milan removed his cloth hat, and ushered his family out of the small living room in the Company-provided single floor home they lived in. Petr couldn’t see his father as the door was shut, but the tension felt by his mother Lenka and elder brother Tomáš was evident on their faces. Tomáš was 13, and clearly knew what was going on.
The meeting between Milan and the Company man went on for twenty minutes, but it was clear by the end of it that the family had been dealt a heavy blow. Milan wouldn’t tell them what was said, but Petr noticed a piece of paper on the table that his father quickly hid in a drawer that he locked with a key. Later that night, Petr snuck back into the living room, and opened the drawer to read the form. Petr couldn’t understand it all, but he did understand numbers, and the numbers filled him with dread.
VÝCHODSOLNÁ TĚŽBA A.S.
Department of Labor & Internal Finance
Debt Recovery File – Generational Continuity Division
Salzbrán Mining District, Rhuvanland
EMPLOYEE RECORD
Name: Milan Hrubý
Employee ID: #147228-SO
Position: Surface Drill Operator – Shift C
Housing Unit: D Block, Room 3B
Statement Period: March 1, 1992 – March 31, 1992
Supervisor: Drábová, J.
SECTION I – BASE WAGES
Description
Amount (SHD)
Base Wage
14,200
Attendance Bonus
500
Hazard Pay
1,200
Night Shift Premium
800
TOTAL GROSS PAY
16,700 SHD
SECTION II – DEDUCTIONS
A. Active Worker Deductions
Item
Amount (SHD)
Notes
Company Housing – D Block, Room 3B
-4,900
With added “structural integrity fee”
Meal Plan & Canteen (Tier II)
-3,450
Includes grocery ration access
Tool Lease (T-14 Drill, Headlamp)
-1,650
Includes blade-wear penalty
PPE Maintenance
-900
Gloves, boots, air filters
Clinic Visit (lung & skin exam)
-1,750
Salt exposure threshold exceeded
Mandatory Welfare Contribution
-1,100
Compulsory, no benefit payout
Internal Bus Pass (Route 3A)
-750
Indexed for seasonal costs
Communication Surcharge (SIM/Radio)
-450
Internal system mandatory
B. Administrative / Disciplinary
Item
Amount (SHD)
Notes
Disciplinary Filing Fee (Unverified Absence)
-500
No hearing provided
Guest Violation Fine (Son entered housing)
-1,200
Unauthorized entry by Matej
Debt Recalculation Handling Fee
-850
Q1 interest update
“Community Preservation Tax”
-600
No transparency in levy usage
SECTION III – INTERGENERATIONAL DEBT BALANCE
Liability Description
Amount (SHD)
Notes
Legacy Housing Debt (Inherited 1994)
-38,000
From Mikuláš Horváth
Tool Replacement Loan (2017)
-5,200
Drill cracked, loaned at 14% interest
Uniform Lease Arrears (2019–2023)
-2,400
Charged during layoffs
Eviction Suspension Fine (2022)
-3,000
Paid to retain D Block housing
Company School Tuition (Ján, 2004–2009)
-11,300
Tier I–III basic instruction
SECTION IV – CHILDREN’S DEBTS (DEPENDENT LIABILITY)
A. Education Fees (All Four Children)
Child Name
Age
Tuition Fees
Notes
Tomáš
13
-6,400
Enrolled in Basic Workstream Curriculum
Matej
12
-6,400
“Re-education module” surcharge applied
Zuzana
9
-5,100
Includes uniform penalty + late fee
Petr
10
-5,100
First-time enrollment; full materials
Subtotal
-23,000
B. Medical Expenses (Children)
Child Name
Visit Count
Amount (SHD)
Notes
Tomáš
2
-2,250
Asthma testing, under review
Matej
1
-1,600
Mild dehydration episode (salt-related)
Zuzana
3
-4,750
Ongoing respiratory case
Petr
1
-1,950
Blistering on hands; work-related proxy
Subtotal
-10,550
C. Youth Provisions
Item
Amount (SHD)
Notes
Educational Supplies (4x)
-3,600
Books, pencils, soap, disciplinary ledger
Shared Dormitory Fee (Tomáš)
-2,500
Assigned youth labor dorm – Class A2
Dependent Subtotal
-39,650
Total across tuition, medical, housing
SECTION V – FUTURE CONTRACTUAL LIABILITIES
Projected Obligation
Projected SHD
Notes
Grandchild Enrollment Bond (est. 4 children)
-36,000
9,000 SHD per future dependent
Family Medical Reserve (Next Gen)
-9,600
Indexed to 2000 standards
Preemptive Discipline Reserve (Tomáš & Matej)
-3,200
Filed in advance due to behavioral alerts
Future Liabilities Subtotal
-48,800
MARCH 2025 TOTALS:
Deductions This Period: -78,000 SHD
Net Earnings (after deductions): -61,300 SHD
New Child & Family Debt Added: -39,650 SHD
Updated Cumulative Debt (as of April 1, 1992): 217,950 SHD
LEGAL STATUS: RED TIER – INTERGENERATIONAL RECAPTURE
You are currently enrolled in the Labor Continuity Statute – Section 3C, mandating indefinite contract renewal under family-bonded conditions. All dependents listed are contractually tied to Východsolná Těžba A.S. for the duration of any outstanding debt, with rights to education, housing, or movement revoked until full settlement is achieved.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF OBLIGATION
I, Milan Hrabý, hereby acknowledge the validity of the attached financial record and affirm my binding participation in the Family Continuity Debt Recovery Program. I waive external appeals, relocation requests, and voluntary resignation until such time as full restitution is made on behalf of my family.
Employee Signature: ___________________________
Date: April 1, 1992
Manager Approval: ___________________________
(Drábová, J.)
Date: April 1, 1992
VÝCHODSOLNÁ TĚŽBA A.S.
“Salt Runs in the Blood. So Must Duty.”
Petr jumped as a hand clamped down on his shoulder. He turned around quickly, trying to hide what he had learned, but his brother Tomàš had already seen. He simply said, “Now you have to grow up,” before leaving the room, leaving Petr alone. He put the form back in the drawer, and went back to bed - without any of the sleep he desperately wanted.
The next dawned and Petr woke up in a changed world. Everything now had a price on it, from food to school supplies to even the air he breathed. He couldn’t tell his teacher what was clearly worrying him, she also worked for the Company. The Company owned the schools. They owned the houses. They owned the roads and the railway and everything else. The Company, ultimately, owned himself.
When Petr was 13, Tomáš left. Petr woke one morning to find his brother gone. He asked his mother where he was and she explained that he had joined the army of Canwyr. Very few Rhuvish were allowed to join the military, and it was an escape from the Company. Petr desperately wanted to follow his elder brother.
When Petr was 14, there was an accident.
Brine Shaft 12 collapsed. Milan Hrabý, Emil Zvara, Filip Valenta, Břetislav Kovář and Jaroš Svarti were all killed. Ivana Horváthová and Erik Novotný went missiled and were declared dead.
And the Company sent a man to Petr’s house the next day. Petr would be required to work in the mine, for the Company, to pay his father’s debt, which was now his. There would be no escape. There was only the Company.
NEW ENTRY: GENERATIONAL CONTRACT ACTIVATION
Successor Debt & Liability Transfer Form – Minor Worker
WORKER PROFILE
Name: Petr Hrabý
ID Number: #89114-JUV
Age: 14
Classification: Tier II Indentured Youth Labor
Housing: Shared Youth Bunk #7, Barracks D
Start Date: April 8, 1996
Assigned Unit: Brine Shaft Assembly Line 2B
Supervisor: Kováč, L.
Lineage Debt Origin: Ján Hrabý († April 5, 1996, mining accident)
SECTION I – INHERITED DEBT TRANSFER
Item
Amount (SHD)
Notes
Parent Debt Transfer (from Ján Horváth)
-217,950
In full; interest frozen for 30 days only
Death Processing Fee (internal HR & burial)
-8,500
Includes “in-shaft recovery” surcharge
Tool Retrieval Fee (post-mortem drill collection)
-1,800
Equipment tagged for damage
Uniform Decontamination & Disposal
-1,400
Salt-burned garments removed from stock
Death Investigation Fee (mandatory)
-2,000
No formal inquiry permitted; fee non-negotiable
Subtotal (Transferred Liabilities)
-231,650
SECTION II – PEER ESCAPE LIABILITY
Item
Amount (SHD)
Notes
Sibling Defection Penalty – Tomáš Hrabý
-11,000
Penalized for lost workforce; filed April 6
Military Absorption Tax (Tomáš)
-6,200
"Education & grooming fees unrecovered"
Future Labor Reclamation Withholding
-3,500
Tomáš’s 2002-2005 projected output loss
Subtotal (Tomáš Penalty)
-20,700
Entirely billed to surviving sibling(s)
SECTION III – INITIAL EMPLOYMENT SETUP (PETR)
Item
Amount (SHD)
Notes
Youth PPE Lease (goggles, gloves)
-850
Compulsory under Salt Exposure Code B-12
Tool Lease – Basic Scraper Unit
-1,100
Lease mandatory; ownership forbidden
Child Nutrition Supplement Ration
-2,800
Canteen access (reduced intake policy)
Apprentice Housing – Barracks Fee
-3,400
“Renovation debt” added for bunk 7
Orientation & Work Indoctrination
-1,250
3-day onboarding, compulsory
Juvenile Worker Monitoring Chip
-1,050
Installed without consent
Subtotal (Initial Setup)
-10,450
Deducted against first 6 months’ earnings
SECTION IV – ONGOING EDUCATION WAIVER PENALTIES
Item
Amount (SHD)
Notes
Education Forfeiture Fee (age 14–18)
-12,000
Child labor waiver charges imposed
State Integration Withholding (school exit fee)
-2,200
Paid to regional “public education pool”
Uniform Return Failure (Zuzana, unpaid sibling)
-750
Passed to next of kin
Subtotal (Youth Development Penalties)
-14,950
Billed regardless of choice or capacity
SECTION V – CURRENT EARNING POTENTIAL
Description
Amount (SHD)
Base Youth Wage
4,800
Salt Exposure Premium
650
Hazard Bonus (Tier II)
400
Behavioral Withholdings
-500
Net Pay (Monthly)
5,350 SHD
➡ Based on current rate, Petr would require ~49 months (over 4 years) of flawless labor to cover the current balance, not including interest or future deductions.
TOTAL OUTSTANDING BALANCE
As of April 16, 1996
TOTAL DEBT OWED: 277,750 SHD
(Debt balance rises ~3% quarterly due to administrative overhead.)
CONTRACTUAL STATUS: Tier II Hereditary Liability Inductee
Future Bonding: ✔ Required for all descendants under 1874 labor law
SUCCESSOR’S OATH
I, Petr Hrabý, aged 14, acknowledge receipt of the liabilities passed to me through my father's service and death under contract to Východsolná Těžba A.S. I affirm my role as hereditary worker and consent to all internal regulations until the obligations of my family line are satisfied in full.
“My debt is my duty, and my duty will not end with me.”
Worker Thumbprint: [] (left thumb, confirmed)
Supervisor Witness: L. Kováč
Date of Activation: April 8, 1996
LEGAL STATUS: RED TIER – INTERGENERATIONAL RECAPTURE
Restricted