by Ken Pence
His trade route first went to Vega (Earth name for the star) – which had abundant, inexpensive mining operations where they would pick up iridium, rhodium, platinum and gold...whatever was being dumped on the market that day, then travel to the Earth system drop point, on minimal power (partially shielded by all the ore and refined metals), schedule and patrol avoidance routes were then mapped for an exchange of a small portion of the ore, then travel to Earth and swap Earth products (rare foods and electrical devices) and travel to the home planets and become rich. One successful trip made a trader rich and the Earth Regulatory Force was not destroying the ships attempting to circumvent their moon, trading base – so no risk. Soon he would be rich himself and he would recoup his losses from his first trip.
Everyone had literally stampeded to get into the act after UmBllatt returned with the marvelous calculators and Earth food stocks. He had saved several peppers for himself from his brother’s trip, none for his crew of course, but he was down to his last few samples. It would be a long trip back if he couldn’t get more of the tasty morsels.
***
Eugene Bradley Phillips was reveling in his machinations. He loved intrigue. Intrigue and guts had brought him to where he was – to the top of the heap. He wanted more. He wanted more power and doubling his lifespan. He might as well lie down and die if this didn’t work out anyway because he was getting old. No one would care if he died. He had no family...no real friends. He had had a fabulous few months lately with his deep space probes using the stolen designs. He had just accumulated several tons of precious metals and minerals from the alien traders. His collaborators in the Earth Regulatory Force had been supplying accurate information and his lawyers were progressing with his plans.
His scientific teams were up and running though he was hemorrhaging money right now to pay for it all. Of course, what would he do with his money if he died because he couldn’t extend his life? He might as well. The myriad of issues was fun – it made him feel young – well, younger. He enjoyed yanking people’s chains. He would pay people he didn’t like to push eggs down the hall with their nose -- just to watch. What fun. He especially didn’t like Andrew Williams and his kids who had thwarted his bid to control the power sources they had acquired. They had stolen the idea from an alien, Rett, and he was going to steal their success.
***
Colonel Kyger had quietly slipped his plan into motion. His patrol craft used no electronic communications of any kind in its implementation. He made sure the Captains of the patrol vessels got sealed orders that they were to open only at designated times and these orders were delivered in secure areas. Patrol routes were quietly changed and different methods were used on different routes. Anyone betraying the routes would only have access to certain information that would highlight any leaks. There was another incursion at the greenhouses in Sinaloa, Mexico with a massive ship taking tons of produce. Trading missions at the lunar post were progressing well with several traders per month. There had been limited diversity in species trading now and it wasn’t clear whether certain species tended to be traders or whether these species were keeping the routes to themselves. It did make it easier to arrange trade items and accommodations however. The alien detection, approach, challenge and escort had been much improved and the sensor system was doing a decent job of detecting approaching ships.
New, passive drones were moved to positions in the solar system that would cover all the previous sensors’ blind spots. The new sensors had overlapping coverage and the lag time was about four and a half (4 ½) hours to just past Neptune’s orbit. They still hadn’t figured a way around light speed with communications other than sending a probe itself and that involved a more sophisticated probe or an actual manned craft and the volume to cover was not easily comprehended.
Andrew approached his wife, Susan, and kissed her solidly. “How’s it going? Any new progress out of the enclosure?”
She pulled him back to him and kissed him again. “Some. Ling and Desiree had some good luck. Doctor Demi Harrison agreed to work with them and actually wanted to work in the Enclosure...can you believe that. They were surprised she and her biogerontologists team would work like that... they said they could get results that way – to help people working there. She really is good in genetic coding and she was willing to transport a lot of her existing equipment to the Enclosure.”
Andrew raised his eyebrows, ”Her own equipment? Really? It belonged to her and not some big corporation.”
“Really. She used money from some previous drug patents to fund everything. She’s pretty wealthy with her age decelerating hormones.”
“I’ve heard of her products. They’re expensive. Anything else?” he asked.
“Nothing other than Brad’s been preoccupied lately. You know what’s bothering the colonel?” she asked.
“He’s just trying to figure out how to stop these incursions past the lunar base. He’s going to clamp down on it according to the treaty terms and it’s not going to be pretty. We’re not sure how the other traders will react. You know we still haven’t got much information to be going out into the galaxy on our own.”
“We did fine at Tau Ceti with a minor glitch or two,” Susan said knowing that hit a nerve with Andrew after her near death there.
“Oh great. Bring that up as a success. We almost got you killed when your propulsion unit malfunctioned. Not to mention we had a big battle when we got back to Earth.”
“...but, it got us the treaty. We have progressed so much since then. Captain UmBllatt is due back this week. You want to go see him. It’d be a good chance to get away. It’s been a while since we’ve gotten away and it would be fun to see him again. We might even want to take the gray ghastly with us,” she said and grinned.
“Rett? I can’t see him wanting to just travel to our lunar base. He has mentioned that he wants to travel to Bellatrix in the Orion constellation. It’s about 243 light years away. It’s a B2. Before you say anything – yes, Tau Ceti was just 11 light years away but with the improvements we’ve made we can get to Bellatrix in less than 3 months. UmBllatt says it’s been a trading center for many of his generations. We’re going to have to go out there sometime. He says it’s a pretty safe neighborhood. The charts and manuals we have seem to back him up. I didn’t mention it but I’ve wanted...” he said as Susan cut him off.
“Whoa boy! How long have you been cultivating these wanderlust thoughts? I mention one little thing and out comes this...this...mid-life crisis crap,” Susan said.
“Wait a second. We could travel there faster than in 3 months couldn’t we?” she asked. “I thought you’d made a lot of improvements in travel time outside of major gravitational fields.”
“Well. I thought we wouldn’t want to go all that way without a couple of side trips.”
“Andrew? Side trips? How long have you been planning this without me?” she paused and looked resigned. “Six months round trip.“ She sighed. “Do you think this place would hold together that long? Funding...no ...don’t tell me. You already have funding from the World Government.”
Andrew nodded.
“Trade goods?”
He nodded.
“Armament?” she asked.
“Enhanced armament and a new cruiser escort, just in case,” he said and looked expectant.
“Okay,” she said and Andrew let out his breath. “But show me your plans,” she said and punched him in the gut playfully. “You should have told me...planning is half the fun. What will I wear? Think of the new polymers I’ll find... I’ll have to get outfits for each spectrum...”
Andrew visibly relaxed when she said that and turned on the projector on his MemDex. “There’s plenty left for you to plan dear. I just wanted to make sure it was feasible and profitable.”
Susan pulled him over and kissed his ear. “You can still surprise me after all these years, relative years that is.”
“...and delight you,” he said playfully.
“Yea
h. You’re still a lot of fun – for a guy.”
Colonel Brad Kyger was upset because the sensor drone construction and deployment was taking longer than he had expected. Take the most optimistic plan and multiply that schedule by three was what an old professor had told him a decade before. He now knew what the old guy had meant – it is the unexpected issues that slow you down. He was pleased the first drones had been deployed and they were sending back data already. They had detected and inbound ship already. There appeared to be some nefarious activity too because there was a ship shadowing Captain UmBllatt’s ship. Brad was looking forward to seeing the old guy anyway and he knew the rest of the team was too.
***
Captain UmBllatt was rapidly approaching the Terran solar system and sure enough, the Earth ships were there again to greet him. He kept telling his brother just to deal with the Earthers directly instead of always trying to get around their patrols but he never listened. He had never listened as a youthful calf. UmBllatt had studied the Earth language, English, extensively since last time and even though he couldn’t see the sense of much of it – much less speak it – he could understand some basic sentences. Understanding your clients is very useful in trade situations.
“Captain, the Earth ship is contacting us in Trade. I have sent them a list of ship’s complement, trade goods on board, requested accommodations, and length of stay as per your orders,” the crewman said. “They are already pulling away.”
The Captain grunted. He had been planning this his whole approach and was determined to do it according to the manual. “At least they now use proper Trade dialect. Let me know when they reply.” I bet they weren’t ready this time, he thought.
The crewman grunted gently to get his attention. He grunted again.
“Yes,” UmBllatt said letting his annoyance show. “What is it?”
The crewman swiveled his oculars downward...embarrassed a bit. “Sir. They have already responded.” The crewman paused.
“Well,” the captain said impatiently. “Do I have to come over there and read it for you?”
“Sir. It’s rather lengthy,” the crewman said. “It is still being received.”
The crewman began to smell the anger scent drifting from the captain and starting reading the message: “Greeting to Captain UmBllatt and all his crew. Welcome on your return. We will try to make your stay with us as profitable and comfortable as possible. We have improved our facilities and will always offer our repeat customers the best trade ratios. Any or all your crew are welcome and we have no diplomats to help this time. We have added an extensive list of trade goods for you to select. A welcoming banquet will be held, at your convenience, when you are settled in.”
“That is quite a message. I’ll bet they want to dump a lot of their faulty merchandise on us so we must be cautious. Also, beware that they will start charging outrageous prices for food and drink and improvements. They must think we just wandered in off the plain. I wonder what trash they will try to foist off on us this time. They set the gaff on the first one and then catch us with the next trip,” the captain was quite proud of his little cautionary speech to his crew since many this trip, did not have his long experience.
The crewman grunted again to catch the captain’s attention.
The captain raised his oculars.
“Sir. There is more to the message,” the crewman stated.
“Well read it. It was sure long enough already,” the captain said.
“Sir, we are still printing. It is many screens long.”
“How could that be? Our system will hold reams of data.”
“Yes sir. The message was tailored to totally fill our system,” the crewman said.
“Humpf, they’ve tried to overload our system. Sabotage right from the start with worthless data,” the captain said.
The crewman grunted -- gently. “Sir. The message apologized at being so lengthy and they said they would have full versions printed for us when we arrived. The list of goods is quite extensive.”
“Ha. They intend to charge us for these lists and food. I know it. So these are their improvements.”
“No sir. These are catalogs for us to choose from. The products are described in Trade with photos and extensive details. They also have a list of things they want.”
“Ah ha,” said the captain. “They will task us with impossible demands and overcharge for these luxury items.”
“Sir, see for yourself. Oh, here’s the last page,” the crewman said. He expelled gas as he skimmed through the data pages he handed to the captain.
“Give me those,” the captain said as he jerked the data from the crewman. The captain too, expelled gas and started giving off the acrid scent of excitement as he left the bridge to go to his quarters. “Get back to work. What do you think this is...a pleasure cruise? I’ll be in my quarters,” he said and left the bridge with a myriad of excited scents trailing after him. The crew looked at each other in surprise and excitement.
No charge for the banquet (large meal?) he thought. Service complete...and open bar? What did that mean? He understood trade though and the list of items was impressive – nothing as paltry as calculators. These people...yes...he must consider them people had treated his crew well last time and their demands were quite reasonable and inventive. He was going to become very rich – rich enough to do anything he wanted after this trip. No skulking around, like his brother. His brother was so juvenile to try to skip the rules. Even though these Earthers treated traders well that followed the rules, he had a feeling they should not be trifled with...his brother never did listen. Maybe he would learn.
THE LUNAR MEET
Andrew and his crew got caught up in the excitement of the coming trip to the moon base to see UmBllatt. They were scared and excited about a possible six month trip to the stars though – it was...daunting. There wasn’t much talk as they lifted off and headed to the lunar base. Brad and Ling had traveled there as soon as the approaching ship (ships?) was (were) detected. The images from the probes came in steadily with about a four-hour delay – latency, in the positions. It appeared that the dual sensor images separated near Neptune and the shadowing image disappeared near Jupiter. Brad’s sealed order to the patrol ships was to abandon their scheduled routes and go dark on a new route until they detected new positioning data for any incoming ships. Each patrol ship moved to an area that would monitor overlapping sectors and watched for any blackout of an inbound route – to pinpoint possible moles within the Earth Regulatory Force or indicate a communication interception.
Reports were encoded and transmitted with a highly encrypted laser burst to an outpost close to the lunar base. This outpost was not part of the base and was manned by specially screened personnel who worked in paired teams. It was the human element, or communications subverted by humans that was still the intelligence nightmare for a secure organization. The Earth Regulatory Force was no exception.
The lunar base was stocked with tons of commercial electronics with controls and instructions printed in Trade. Literally tons of foodstuffs were stocked on the moon according to experience and manual references. Jalapeno peppers and apples, pears, pineapples, kiwi, tomatoes, cantaloupes, watermelon, plus squash, nuts, breads, and potato varieties were stored with instructions for their use – all instructions were printed in Trade. Three dimensional movie players and documentary movies with subtitles in Trade were going to be the rage...hopefully. There were also some photo posters of beautiful animal scenes from Earth printed on the new printing medium from the first trading session.
Its chemical – metallic ceramic – polymer composition had been discerned and duplicated almost as well as the original. The material didn’t appear to age or tear and would absorb colors well – as long as it was freshly manufactured. Getting the material to allow full color printing had required a composition alteration from the original formulation – none of the manuals they had received had more than one color other than black. They had been hard
pressed to find a pen formulation that would write on the paper but they had finally gotten a pen from an American company who had printed on the side, “WRITES RIGHT ON EVERY PLANET.” Believe it or not – that translated pretty well into the Trade language – Standard or Trade for short. There were lots of knick-knacks. There were watches with hugely adjustable bands that could be set to any planet’s rotational period. Every manufacturer was trying to get into the market just to get the right to say they sold off planet.
Brad and Ling were looking over the stock as Andrew was coming down the hall after their short flight from Earth.
“Look at this stuff. Flashlights with stocks of old-style power cells and solar chargers, radios in every configuration, and even perfumes.” Brad looked disgusted but Ling held back judgment and Andrew was ambivalent.
“We’ll see. Let’s not give up quite yet. Now that transport of merchandise to the moon is so inexpensive – we’ll have figure out the best items to get the highest rates of return. The power generators, stressed field generators, molecular disruptors, star maps, language trainers and manuals almost were worth Earth’s capital investment already – we will create new stress if a government facility starts making a profit. Where could that lead?” Andrew said with a laugh. “When does UmBllatt get here?”
