The ancient human, Donald Urkish the Fifth, swiped his weathered hand, clearing his HUD of the video feed he had been reviewing. The footage was morbid; assassinations were a messy business, but he felt it important to remind himself of the stakes of his little game.
He sat back in his liquid chair, stretching his left arm gingerly, wincing in pain as the tendons and bones ground against one another. His palatial office was decorated with the expensive art his father and grandfather before him had made a point of collecting. It had been years since he had done a proper valuation, but the various light paintings and sculptures that decorate his walls were worth more than most corporations.
His chair floated to the left, guided by the subtle dance of the aglets on his knotted fingers. His hands and arms were a web of bulging veins visible beneath paper-thin skin. He gazed through the glass steel wall of his office, looking out over the harsh landscape outside.
Craggy rock formations jutted from the ground at severe angles like the teeth of some deep sea creature. The pitted stones glowed a deep vermillion in the thick mist that had settled across the scene. Rivers of mercury sloughed through the rocks, their silver surface sparkled and danced. A long, winding crevice filled with molten lava cast an orange pall in the distance.
The planet he called home, Lugh, was part of a three-planet system, each of the globes danced around one another as they circled the star Frigg. One of Lugh’s triplet siblings, Lleu, was just beginning to crest the horizon, its white surface flecked with swirls of blue, its jagged ring of asteroids glistened in the mottled sunlight.
It saddened him to think of the transformation his planet was undergoing. One day soon, the harsh terrain would be replaced by lush verdancy as the Terralight Alliance terraforming systems did their work.
“Apap,” he said, blinking his sunken, bloodshot eyes.
“What is it, sir?” the female A.I. asked. Donald had always been curious as to why personal A.I.’s had gender, and more so, how the gender was assigned.
“Did the bid go through?”
“Of course, sir. You said to spare no expense.”
He grinned, the liver spots on his forehead creased as the lattice of wrinkles around his eyes appeared. Though only forty-two years old, his physical body had degenerated rapidly over the last six years. He had the bearing of a man twice his age, and were it not for the near constant flow of Boxaz into his system, his hands would be crippled from arthritis. What remained of his cartilage screamed and crackled in protest with each movement.
“What was the total expenditure?”
“Seventy-six trillion zenny.”
He licked his dry, crackled lips. Not bad. Certainly not as much as he was prepared to spend, and a fraction of its valuation. Sure, it had taken the combined power of the entire Genematics computer systems to slide the bid in during the nanosecond opening. But any losses his megacorporation suffered would be well worth it in the long run.
“Which subsidiary did you use?”
“Cosmodynamics, a third party holding corporation owned in part by Ultrastellar Technologies.”
He nodded his head.
“We’re not a major shareholder; I presumed it would give us the greatest distance,” Apap added.
“And the Board?”
“Appointed from the list of trusted contacts you approved.”
“Excellent. Show me the summary charts.”
Apap displayed charts and graphs of the mining yields, as well as the P&L statements for the previous four years of Muraviov-Abe Works, highlighting the mining operations. It was rare for the mining rights of an entire planet to go up for sale. But with a few well-placed contacts, and some flattering whispers to the board of Gurginov Chemicals, Donald had carefully orchestrated the revolt. And more importantly, Merodek had dissolved the corporation behind the conspiracy, Muroviov-Abe Works.
Donald had been correct in assuming the liquidation would be an automated affair, allowing Apap to step in, exploiting a system loophole and outbidding the auto-system limitations. He had snatched up the mining rights to the planet Sitatara, the resource rich red planet that was still waiting to be exploited in the Corus system, home of the Faro.
Donald smiled as he pictured Merodek’s face when he received the news. What a shame he couldn’t be there in person.
He glanced at the clock in his HUD. Four minutes.
“Bring me the defensive schematics of the Moora colony.”
“Current or historical?” Apap asked.
“Current.”
A flood of information poured onto his HUD. The planet Sitatara had a harsh environment. Formed several thousand years prior when two smaller planets in the Corus system collided, the surface still boiled with the energy of the explosion. The event had been witnessed in horror by the Faro, many centuries before they were subjugated by the Five. Both of the small planetoids had been colonized at the time. The loss of life was staggering.
All that remained of the many cities that once dotted the landscape was a small colony, Moora, a mining facility. Only the hardiest of miners and technicians dared live there. But the advances being made in mining tech at their R&D station were worth a fortune.
The small colony was heavily protected. Auto-turrets, grav-mines, and a small army on the payroll to ensure that neither Corporate raiders nor the Syndicate could get their hands on the valuable heavy metals being pulled from the burnt ground each day.
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
“Pull the defensive reserves down to thirty-seven percent.”
“Sir,” Apap asked hesitantly. “Are you sure that’s wise?”
“No,” he grinned. “In fact, I’m hoping it isn’t.”
“I’m not sure I follow.”
“You don’t need to,” he answered; a twinge of annoyance hung in his voice. “Just do as I ask please. Remove the automated defenses as well, and liquidate them on the open market.”
“Yes, sir.”
His HUD lit up as the sales orders were processed. He stretched his aching neck and ran his withered hand through his ragged beard. His plan all hinged on the next five minutes of negotiation.
He flicked his aglets and smiled warmly. Devi Inmar’s bulbous Heruka face filled his screen, his head sack fully inflated.
“Mr. Urkish, to what do we owe the pleasure?”
“Please, Devi, no need to be so formal. How’s your wife, Kirti?”
“She is well, thank you.”
“Is her irna bru still as terrible as I remember?”
Devi laughed melodically. “Indeed, very much so. Bless her heart, we did not marry a cook.”
“We’ll have to have the two of you over for dinner sometimes. Put your assistant in touch with Apap, she’ll get it scheduled.”
“You are too kind.”
“I know you’re a busy man, Devi, so I’ll cut to the chase.”
Devi snorted. “We can’t imagine we’re busier than you.”
“The reason I requested this meeting, is an old friend has asked me to facilitate a negotiation with Daytech Mechanics. Something valuable fell into his lap, but his holding corporation has neither the capacity nor desire to leverage it. They’re looking for a quick turnaround sale.”
Devi’s head sack deflated. “And why not go to the Board?”
Donald grinned. “We both know that boards are slow. I thought I’d reach out to the CEO directly, and see if there was interest. If there is, and I suspect you will want to pounce on this opportunity right away, you can help convince the board to approve the expenditure.”
“And what are we meant to buy?”
Donald swiped his fingers, sending the documents Apap had drawn up to Devi’s HUD. He watched in silence as Devi read, his head sack slowly reflating until Donald thought it would burst. Heruka rarely made strong poker players.
“How…” Devi asked breathlessly. “How did they stumble upon this?”
“Sheer dumb luck,” Donald lied. “One of their day traders was monitoring the late night markets and saw Aeon Chemical liquidating one of their smaller corporations. He placed a bid, and much to his surprise, won.”
“And their asking price?”
“Eighty-nine trillion zenny.”
Devi laughed, but stopped, realizing Donald had not joined him.
“Eighty-nine trillion? That’s nowhere near the valuation.”
“I know. That’s why I assumed you’d be interested.”
“But why the low cost? They could get triple that in an open market bid.”
“They’re a very motivated seller. A few bad investments have significantly hurt their portfolio. They need the money from this sale, and they need it fast.”
Devi nodded as he continued to read the documents.
“This seems too good to be true.”
“Well, if you aren’t interested, I can reach out to-“
“No!” Devi cut him off. “No, we’re definitely interested.”
Donald rubbed the scraggily beard he had grown twenty years ago when his hair had started to thin. “How quickly can you push the sale through?”
Devi exhaled sharply. “Two, three days to whip up the necessary votes and push the contracts through legal.”
Donald resisted the urge to smile. “There’s one catch.”
“Yes?”
“Their legal department is caught up in a nasty contract dispute with WarpWide Private Security. They asked that you push through the sale on your end, so that the second they’re cleared by the lower courts, they can execute the sale.”
“Sure, that shouldn’t be a problem.”
“Excellent. I can count on it then?”
Devi nodded slowly. “Yeah. Absolutely. You have our word.”
“Thanks, Devi.”
“Thanks?” he laughed. “We owe you, Donald. Thanks for bringing this to us.”
“Of course. Just keep me abreast of the situation.”
“Absolutely.”
“And don’t forget about dinner. On me.”
“You’re too kind. We’ll talk soon.”
“Yes, talk soon.”
Donald closed the channel. The puzzle was nearly complete. One more piece to put in place.
“Apap,” he said. “Please connect me via a protected channel with High Justice Mon Munume.”
He tapped his foot rhythmically on the wooden floor of his office as he waited, his stiff ankle popping with each movement.
“Donald, you old drunk, how long has it been?” Mon Munume smirked.
“Three years. You look old.”
She laughed, shaking her Abu head, the bony second spine waggling behind her skull. “You’re one to talk. You look just like your old man did when we first met.”
She shifted in her chair, the dark blue and black pattern of her wet skin coruscated in the light.
“He never approved of you as my roommate,” Donald laughed. “‘A bad influence’ I believe were his exact words.”
She grinned, her large tail swaying behind her left shoulder. “If he only knew the truth.”
“Listen, I have a favor to ask.”
“A favor? The great Donald Urkish the Fifth needs a favor from me?” she teased. “What could the CEO of the least powerful Mega-corp possibly need from me?”
He ignored her barbs. Social decorum had never been her strong suit, which is why she had studied law.
“There is a dispute currently underway between Cosmodynamics Holding Corporation and WarpWide Private Security in the low court. Something about a breach of contract, I’m foggy on the details.”
“And you want me to push a judgement through?”
Donald nodded.
“That shouldn’t be a problem,” she said, as her aglets danced.
“Well, here’s the thing,” Donald said, leaning forward. “I need this to happen at a very specific time.”
“When?”
“That’s the catch. I don’t know.”
She smiled, shaking her head. “What are you up to?”
He held his hands up, feigning innocence. “My dear, you wound me. I’m simply doing a favor for a friend.”
Her eyes narrowed as she nodded. “Donald Urkish doesn’t simply do favors for friends unless he’s getting something in return.”
“Please?” he asked kindly. “I will owe you a favor.”
She ran her four long fingers down the back of her spinal ridges, a habit she’d had longer than Donald could remember. Which was a remarkably long time.
“I suppose I could write up the decision order, and set my A.I. to execute it as soon as you give word.”
“That would be great. How long would it take for the decision to be processed?”
“No more than five minutes.”
“Perfect. I’ll have Apap send the notification the instant we’re ready. And let me know what I can do for you.”
She grinned wickedly. “Oh believe me, I will”
“Thanks, Mon. Apap will be in touch.”
He shuddered as the connection severed. He’d never been overly fond of his former roommate, but having a High Justice in his pocket was well worth swallowing his contempt for her.
“Apap,” he said.
“Yes, sir?”
“I need you to monitor all Aeon Chemical fleet movements.”
“Sir?”
“Every single battle ship, freighter, carrier; everything they or their subsidiaries own.”
“And what am I looking for exactly?”
“Any movements in the Corus system,” he answered. “In particular, anything that looks suspicious - out of the ordinary. Have they shifted any fleets, moved any arms towards our new holdings, subcontracted with any defense corporation…”
“Yes, sir. Aeon Chemical has no holdings or personnel on the planet Sitatara. It should be fairly easy to identify.”
“Excellent. I want you to notify me, day or night, of anything that catches your attention.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Apap, I mean anything. No matter how insignificant you might find it, please inform me.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And I’ll want daily updates on ship movements.”
“I’ll add those to your evening report schedule.”
“Thank you, Apap.”
“Sir, if you’re concerned about an Aeon Chemical attack, why not increase the troop presence there? Shore up the defenses.”
“Thank you, Apap, that will be all.”
“Very good, sir.”
Donald sat back in his chair, his aglet activating the massage system which rolled and twisted his aching muscles. Now all he had left to do, was wait.