by Marcus Sloss
The Arimi looked at me and I nodded. The information was sent to my translator.
“I will stick to this list. Thank you, Luna; thank you, Winston. Should I have the Tavers make additional chairs for my next visit?” I asked, rising to my feet.
“Consider them purchased. Five per, if you can. Until next time, Cap,” Winston said, flashing his teeth. Luna produced an odd wave with her tail.
I turned towards the exit. My next stop was to talk to my armorer and logistician, Torrez. I reached the exterior gravity elevator and was whisked to our custom storage container after a brief exposure to the void.
I found Torrez sorting loot on a rack of shelves, tapping his chin. “How is it looking?” I asked, peering over his shoulder.
“Extremely well. The no-brainer purchases have already been initiated,” Torrez said. I walked over to check his list. “Mostly building equipment … three new bull dozer type machines ... Ah, good, here they are!” he exclaimed
The storage room rapidly expanded. Massive digging machines occupied a majority of the remaining empty floor space. These were for digging into the mountains. I walked over to one the size of a big rig to study the details of the massive contraption. A brown glow told me it was powered by a carbon power generator. There were no wheels or tracks, as it hovered off the ground like an anti-gravity sled. Each had a single seat in an enclosed cabin for an operator. At the head of the machine was something akin to spiked pistons, with pumps to fire them; a horizontal conveyor belt, of sorts, ran through the interior of the machine. My guess was that the front smashed rocks into bricks or bits and then ejected the refuse out the rear. There were several configuration options, and I saw where the piston alignments could be adjusted on reconfigurable rails. The refuse could even be processed by each machine. You could make both rectangular and arched bricks, which made smile. I remembered from high-school history that arches were much stronger than rectangular door frames.
Another set of machines were added to the storage room, giving me a jolt of surprise. It looked like the wood processor back at the Mansion now had friends. Four more, to be exact. Their wide-mouth feed trays were closed for travel. These also sat on their own anti-gravity sled, and would be towed home from the Xgate by a single truck.
Felix and Dalila arrived, and started transferring the new purchases out the portal. I stepped back, letting them work, when another batch of earth moving dozers arrived. My goodness. Maybe, one day, we could shift our production into manufacturing and advanced crafts.
Massive cranes folded up into the corner next to me, forcing the room to spawn more space. Yes! I pumped my fist in the air and did a little dance. I was getting castle walls and a manor. Booyah!
Seeing all the machinery stacking up beside me, I became concerned with how much all this was costing me. It was difficult to gauge the outflow of high-cost purchases against the inflow of whatever our loot was worth.
“Are we going to have enough money for projected armor and weapon upgrades?” I asked Torrez, though the machines impressed me so much, the smile never left my face.
“Oh yeah, guaranteed. We have so much, I don’t know how to spend it all,” Torrez scoffed.
“Well, when is the burrowing transport station supposed to arrive?” I asked, knowing that was a key item on our must-buy list.
“The underway? Jacky has it—she even picked up two additional location portals for future expansions. We are doing fine on our account balances; and we have yet to finish looting Denver. This is going to be a very busy shopping session. Oh, hey, Perci,” Torrez said to the sound of approaching footsteps.
My little wife hung on my arm. “How did it go with Winston?” Perci asked.
“Great. Here is the updated data; Winston said he’ll continue to update it. No species breakdown yet, but one day I will win him over. You're still taking Everly personnel shopping?” I asked her, then snuck in a quick kiss and a subtle ass grab. “I missed our morning exercise.”
Torrez rolled his eyes. “I will be super excited when we get your manor built. Jasmine asks if she can watch TV on the fold-out bed in RV3 at least three times a day, but half the time the darn thing is rocking,” Torrez said with a head-shaking snicker.
“I heard Maria can’t keep her stones in and gave up,” Perci said with a waggle of her eyebrows.
“Ugh, I swear. It’s that stupid line Eric used … ‘What better way for us to prove we believe in the future than by having children?’ I plan to hand off my kids to you when they stink or are in full-on terror mode, and then steal them back when they are behaving themselves,” Torrez smirked, nodding his head to his own little fantasy.
I saw Everly enter the storage area. My Crixxi cutie was in yoga leggings and a plain pink shirt; her red tail swishing behind her. “Everly,” I bounded over to her, “there are three thousand Crixxi coming up for bid in the market. I’d like to bolster our army numbers.” Everly’s purple eyes shone. “In the file I’m sending you,” I tapped at my Gpad, “there is also data on two other species we should purchase … Mounamine and Orinia, if I am reading this right. I was—”
Everly stopped me with a hand on my shoulder and a kiss on the cheek. “Those are fantastic species to add. We Crixxi never use them, because they are both horrid climbers and afraid of heights. But for you ground dwellers, they will be perfect. There is also a docile tree bear, not unlike a panda, that we will be buying to help the Crixxi in our towers,” Everly said, running a hand down the machines. “I missed you this morning, my chief. You should run less and stay in bed more,” she pouted. “These machines are making me purr, and you—”
“Would you look at the time,” Torrez said, and Perci chuckled, deciding to help the poor man out.
“Torrez,” she ordered, “I need you to go armament shopping, as in, ten minutes ago.”
He shrugged, grinned, then handed her his lists. As he turned to go weapons shopping, I sought to escape with him. Everly pouted her lips, begging for a kiss. Having granted her wish with a tender smooch, Torrez and I sped off for the market. It was time to go soldier toy shopping. I sighed happily. About freaking time.
CHAPTER 2
“How much further?” I asked as we strolled down the corridor of booths.
“Cap, we’ll get there when we get there, the same thing I tell Jasmine. Why, did you get distracted?” Torrez said with a smirk.
“Those siren babes were… babes. Too bad we don’t have an ocean nearby. I eventually want a water fighting force,” I said with a shrug. We passed a wood carving trinket store. Good to see the arts hadn’t die, even during this age of Vikingism. We passed a livestock vendor showing customers a pig-like creature bigger than an elephant, with short, striped fur. “Maybe they’d have chickens?” I mused.
“Boss, the whole point of this crazily disorganized market not letting you go to exactly where you want is for just this reason. You are forced window shop and every merchant along the way get a crack at you,” Torrez said with a chuckle. “I promise, we can check for chickens on the way back, after we get more weapons and arms. Maria has been asking for some chicken eggs, anyhow. Those green eggs taste just fine, but she wants the real thing,” he sighed, “Women!”
“She was working for Perci, right? What is she doing these days?” I asked, knowing that between Jacky, Everly, and the other Mother Hens, Perci had plenty of help with her tasks.
“She hasn’t committed to any new roles. Right now, she is task jumping. She was helping me for a bit, but we got into a scuffle—a minor one, mind—over how I could never find the things right in front of my face. She has many options to choose from,” Torrez said with a chuckle. My mom always gave me a hard time about the same thing. “You know, it's really interesting that we’re building up to a true economy. It won’t happen overnight, but it is great to see. I love Maria and we are great together, but we need space between us to stay together. I hope she finds something she truly enjoys doing.” He looked over at me, “Speaking of boring lov
ers … Why do you tell Everly you are going for a run, only to spend time with Jill and Mary?”
“The babes know,” I said, with a wince. “I intend to go for a run. But then I run into this adorable little girl who wants to go on a hike. I don’t really need to run, with the virum in my body, but I do need to clear my mind. Turns out, an innocent three-year-old is the perfect reset for me. Our conversations are so basic. I love how simple our time together is; Jill rarely says a word.” He grinned, “my other four ladies even jogged past us this morning as we strolled along. Jill normally takes off at that point, to jog with the others.”
“Is there a stopping point to this harem building?” Torrez asked, a bit concerned. “I see that Jevon has Becca and Sarah now. Bonnet has a reverse harem after she added those Crixxi boys. I just worry. Maria says I just need to mind my own damn business, which is her and her only.” He rubbed his chin. “I actually think Mary humanizes you the same way Jasmine does to me. But, still—"
“Where do I stop? I’ve asked myself the same question many times.” I shrugged, “I have no idea. According to Nancy, never, it’s part of my role as a Viking king—to feast on the flesh of my conquests. Perci doesn’t care one way or the other. She is captivated by the tender love that a large family brings. Willow was a big fan of a throuple, but it continues to expand. I am not sure. I guess I need to talk to Willow; she was pretty assertive the last time the subject came up, but doesn’t complain. I have not seen her frown much, if at all, lately, when it comes to her personal life. Everly has no shame, she is a minx in bed; she devours the others more than me.”
I didn’t really know what to do. “Jill is a pariah, really. I don’t think she would … Yeah,” I nodded to myself, “she would never have been interested in something like this before. My guess is, I am a rebound, almost the exact opposite of what she had—a shut-in, enclosed life with unlimited rules that she rebelled against. She loves kids and wants more. She keeps spitting out her stones like she has, and she will need to pick a dad, soon. Her daughter calls me Dad, so …” Again, I shrugged.
“As much fun as it is, discussing your love life, we are here,” my friend said with the showmanship of a reality-show host, his arms spread wide. I was not impressed. At the booth where we stopped, a seven-foot-tall slug creature slept, a long trail of drool connecting its lip with the floor. There were no displays of any kind. He, she, or it might as well have been selling air. “Excuse me, good… creature,” Torrez began.
“Hey!” I shouted.
I named the species sluggero and this individual Blob.
Species: Sluggero
Individual Name: Blob
Rating: 3
The creature jiggled slightly, slurped up the long line of drool, then grumbled as it awoke. “I am Blob. Were you wanting to tour my items?” Blob asked with a purple sucker for a mouth that stretched wide in a giant yawn. Yuck, no teeth. The two beady eyes peered down from short fleshy stalks. His eyes were tiny compared to the immensity of the rest of the creature, who was covered in a yellow-tinged, fleshy outer layer.
“We may have an outdated list of your items,” Torrez said politely.
“Ah, we are a manufacturing nation; we always have items for sale. Our protector alliance keeps us safe. In the last million years we have never missed a golden gate,” Blob said confidently. The slug motioned its head for us to join it in its booth.
“Yes, that was what our research showed. There are others with lower prices, but you’re beyond reliable,” Torrez said, “You were also recommended.”
That meant Lilith had all but ordered us to come here.
This confirmed my theory nicely. We walked over to Blob in the middle of the room. The huge slug flipped a sign at the back of the booth that indicated new customers needed to ring a bell at the counter to get his attention. I saw a little buzzer materialize on the counter right before the bottom of the floor vanished. We shifted through the void until we arrived in a storage room so vast, I thought we had shifted to another orbital.
“Woah!” I blurted out, checking out my surroundings.
There were mechs, tanks, crab suits, aircraft, jetpacks, hover boards—and that was just what I could see from where I stood. I started to hyperventilate in excitement. This would forever change how we conducted battle. Hell, there was a mecha bigger than a divine-ape in here. Not that it could defeat an army of them, but—
“Let me see your funds,” Blob requested. “I should have asked earlier. Generally, when we are referred, it means you’re prepared.” Torrez shot the creature a translator data link. “Interesting. There is enough here to cause a flux in the market. Hmm… We can definitely deal. How much of this did you plan on spending here?”
“All of it,” Torrez said. “We are not even a quarter of the way done adding our loot to the Xgate.”
It was Blob’s turn to be shocked. He, she, or it sputtered out a raspberry. I looked to see if it was a boy or girl.
“Blob,” I asked callously, “are you male or female?” I doubted this being would stop a huge sale over hurt feelings.
“Female. Smart of you to ask; you would never find out unless you flipped me over, which I would find gravely offensive,” Blob said in a challenging tone.
“Thank you, for the clarity. So … ahh … what can we afford?” I asked.
“We have fixed prices based on zinc here. Not everyone uses zinc, but our protectors do. They love the mineral and desire it over everything else,” Blob said, and I grinned. We happened to be sitting, literally, on a whole mountain of zinc. “You will need to get this,” she gestured to the digital balance sheet, “converted first.”
“I have someone at the bank right now. Before they convert things, please confirm, you want zinc and zinc only?” I asked.
“Confirmed.”
“Willow, I need zinc. Buy a hefty amount.” - Cap
“Okay, the bank has a mediocre rate on zinc. There was a different bank ten minutes away with a better rate. Heading there now.” - Queen Willow
“We will have a new balance sheet, in zinc, here soon,” I said, letting my eyes roam over the amazing items before me. “How is this possible?”
“I can say very little beyond the fact that we are quite safe where we live,” Blob mentioned. “We are safe, have many allies, and many defenses. I hope that helps.”
“Well, we are trying to get to that point ourselves. I hope our purchases today help us achieve that. Can we afford this mechanized monster over here?” I said, pointing to the hundred-foot-tall mecha of awesomeness. “That would be amazing on so many levels.”
“Easily. Those are not even that powerful. More of a builder unit, really. I guess I first need to know what your preferred power consumption element is?” Blob asked.
“Nitrogen is the biggest element in our atmosphere. We originally thought carbon generators would be smart, mainly to help our environment, but our pollution has dropped dramatically. That, and they underperform nitrogen generators, by a lot,” Torrez said in awe as he gazed around at all the weaponry. “Oxygen is a distant second. Cap, did you know Mars’s atmosphere is only 3% nitrogen whereas Earth’s is 72%?”
“I thought nitrogen was the primary universal element?” I said, knowing my own research was lacking.
Blob grunted in answer. “It is, hence nitrogen generators being the most commonly produced power source. We produce ten different power generators. Nitrogen power generators are not that expensive. Almost every planet has nitrogen, which means it is a popular option,” Blob said in a teacher’s dry tone. She leaned her body forward to propel herself to the giant machine of awesomeness. “The foot has a wide entry point. You then shoot up a tube to the operating chamber at the pinnacle. Brexka is the name of this unit. I will sell this to you on one condition: It can’t be used for battle.”
I craned my neck up at the massive device. The design was similar to what most bipedal creatures had: hips, a torso, two legs, and an egg shaped dome for a head. It was very
much a robot, with the clear cranium it had. I had already come up with a new name for this mighty creation… Goliath. I wondered how it operated, and then realized that she had said not to use it in battle.
“Uh…” I scratched my head, “I gotta ask—why not?”
“What do you think happens when this thing falls over? What size power plant do you think it contains to move so much compressed material?” Blob said, sputtering her lips. “Your virum bodies would get smashed from the fall and then eviscerated from the explosion of the generator. We do build fail-safes to avoid such region disintegrating explosions, but nothing is guaranteed in war.”
“I almost regret buying those cranes,” Torrez muttered. “I do see what you mean, at least. Why provide such a huge lumbering target when you can pack the same punch in a smaller profile?” Torrez said. “What are your best sellers?”
“The gravity sled tanks do really well. Hard to go wrong with a small frame, single driver, heavy punch, and decent price tag. They even move at a decent pace, approximately …” a series of slurps and bowel noises burst from our translators. “Sorry,” Blob said, “the translator is struggling with the speed conversion to a scale you are more familiar with.” We waited patiently.
“One hundred and two point three miles per hour,” the translator squawked.
“That is impressive. I need those. Is there a hauling platform they can tow?” I asked, looking at a gravity sled tank in the distance.
Blob tapped on her translator, muttered some words, and then smiled. A hovering platform descended from the roof to land in front of us.
“We will proceed on this going forward. I refuse to slug my way across this floor for hours,” Blob said with a wink. I didn’t find her pun that humorous, but it was a valiant effort.
“Okay, a tour of the bestselling tanks, please. Do you have more that can be brought? How does that work for you?” Torrez asked, hopping directly onto the platform behind Blob. A few steps up a side loading staircase let me join them before we lifted into the air.
