Planet Broker 3

by Eric Vall

  “How does he even have time to make these little cakes in the morning?” Akela wondered as she shoved one in her mouth.

  “Hey,” I laughed, “you have actual food. Eat that, not the cake!”

  “I’ll eat both,” she mumbled through her mouthful, but she sighed with pleasure as she chewed the small treat.

  “So, when will the mines be fully operational?” I asked after a few minutes.

  “They can be operational today,” Akela said after she swallowed her cake, “but honestly, we need a refinery. There’s already a bunch of mior waiting to be refined from when we blew the hole.”

  “I’ll talk to the king about it,” I replied. “I’m sure we can get one built quickly.”

  “There may already be a building.” Akela shrugged. “Really, the mior doesn’t need much, just to be separated from the dirt and rocks. It doesn’t have to be refined like most other substances. We just need a place to store it.”

  “Hm,” I hummed as I thought. “I’m sure I can get that going.”

  The mechanic asked me how it went with the king and the communication devices, and we had a good laugh about his lack of experience with technology. The old male was open to the concept, and he tried, it just wasn’t as easy for him to pick up on as it would be for some of the younger Gelm.

  After we finished our food, I could tell Akela was antsy to get back to work, so I gave her a kiss and sent her on her way back into the mines, with the promise she would meet me at the castle later for the meeting with the lords. Then I headed into the city to find Sef’sla and Neka.

  The two women were at one of the small clinics in town. There were only three, and of them this was by far the largest, though it was still incredibly small when you considered the size of a typical hospital.

  Once the electricity was running, it would be easier to upgrade the place, but for the meantime, the girls were doing what they could with the medicines they had available. They’d done diagnostics with Omni to determine which of the plants we had on board would have medicinal effects for the Gelm, and surprisingly, a lot of them would work. So, Sef’sla had taken clones of the plants and brought them to the small clinic so she could show the staff how to care for them. The Almort princess firmly believed that as important as it was to create medicines, it was equally important to cultivate those medicines yourself through herbs and research.

  When I found the women, Neka was showing a group of Gelm females how to water the plants properly, and Sef’sla was looking over a young boy who had been injured while playing.

  “What’s going on here?” I asked as I approached the Almort princess.

  The young boy looked at me with wide eyes, and the mother had her hands on his shoulders.

  “Gree here had a bit of a fall,” the mother said as she looked down at the boy, and he nodded.

  Sef’sla carefully finished applying the seaweed wrap to his knee, then smoothed it out and smiled at the child.

  “All better,” she hissed, and the bioluminescent scales on her face flared with light that made the boy giggle. “It should be fully healed in a few days.”

  “Completely healed?” the mother asked, and her eyes were laced with skepticism. “That was a deep gash, are you sure?”

  “Yes,” Sef’sla replied with a soft smile. “Just be careful to not injure it more, and make sure to leave the wrap on. If you need any further assistance, I will be here during most days, but we are training the staff in these procedures as well.”

  “Okay,” the mother said, but her eyes still looked wary. “Thank you very much, Madam Sef’sla.”

  “My pleasure,” the Almort princess said, and she patted the child on the shoulder. “Be careful.”

  “I will,” he murmured in a small, sweet voice.

  The mother ushered her child out, and I grabbed Sef’sla by the waist and spun her around to kiss her.

  “Oh,” she chuckled as she pulled away. “What was that for?”

  “You’re just wonderful.” I grinned. “And I love you.”

  “I love you, too,” she clicked with a smile, then she sighed as she looked around at the small hut made of stone and mud. “Once Akela has electricity going, we really need to upgrade this place. I don’t want these people to have to go through another plague like the one we just rid them of.”

  “Absolutely,” I agreed. “Akela said she should have some power going by the end of the day.”

  “That would be wonderful,” Sef’sla gasped, and her navy eyes widened.

  “I’ve brought you and Neka lunch,” I added as I held up the small bag the king had given me.

  “Are there tea cakes in there?” the princess inquired.

  “And tea,” I laughed.

  “What about fish?” Neka asked from behind me, and I spun around, grabbed her by the arm, and pulled her in for a kiss, too.

  “Fish, too,” I promised.

  “Yum,” the cat-girl giggled, but I wasn’t sure if she meant the fish or our kiss, since she still stared at my lips.

  “Let’s find a spot for you both to eat,” I suggested.

  Sef’sla led us outside to a small garden-like area at the back of the hut. The clinic was in the middle of town so it was easily accessed by the citizens, which meant it was near plenty of other shops as well, and we took a seat at a small table as we watched the Gelm come and go from the market.

  “It’s so warm out here,” Neka purred as she stretched out in the sunlight of the dual suns. “It makes me want to take a nap.”

  “I’m afraid our work for the day isn’t quite done,” Sef’sla chuckled.

  “Maybe some food will help you get through it,” I offered as I unloaded the bag of goodies.

  “Oh, yes, please!” Neka chirped, and she stared at me with bright, attentive eyes.

  I watched as the two women ate happily, with the suns bright on their faces. Sef’sla wore the hologram sunglasses Akela had made for her since she was not used to the brightness of other planets, but they looked good on her, and I found myself smiling at how adorable both she and Neka were.

  “Have you all checked the soil today?” I asked.

  “Oh, yes,” Neka said with a smile and a nod. “That was the first thing we did.”

  “How was it?” I questioned.

  “It’s coming along nicely,” Sef’sla answered. “It should be the proper acidity level by tomorrow to begin planting.”

  “That’s great.” I smiled. “You all have done wonderful work.”

  “Well, we’re not done yet,” Neka pointed out as she shoved a fish cake into her mouth.

  “No,” I agreed. “Not quite yet. You all will be back at the castle for the meeting with the lords, yes?”

  “Of course,” Sef’sla agreed. “We wouldn’t miss it.”

  “Yeah.” Neka grinned, and crumbs of fish cake stuck to her full lips. “We know you want us there.”

  “I do,” I laughed, “but not just for moral support. I want you to explain to the lords the ways you plan to improve their hospitals and soil as well.”

  “We knew that,” Neka giggled. “I just wanted to hear you say you wanted us there.”

  “I always want you everywhere,” I told the cat-girl honestly, and I reached out to scratch behind her ear.

  The two women ate and drank their tea, and I drank a bit more tea as I watched the small market come alive with the beautiful day. Everyone had something to offer, and it seemed the Gelm operated under a barter system, rather than using a currency of any sort.

  “How do those who aren’t farmers make trades?” I asked the girls as I gestured to the market. “Have you noticed?”

  “Oh, yes.” Neka bobbed her head up and down. “We come out here often while we’re working. We’ve seen some of them make clothes, or shoes, some make jewelry.”

  “Right,” Sef’sla hissed in agreement, “so they trade what they can. I’ve seen some people have elixirs or herbs as well. I asked one woman who said she grew the plants in her ho
me to support her family, but that they wouldn’t grow in the regular soil outside. She had to get soil from far away, and she adds certain things to it so it will continue to grow her plants.”

  “It sounds like you could help her with that as well,” I said.

  “We already offered,” Neka laughed.

  I smiled at the girls, and once they’d finished eating, I gave each of them a kiss on the head, packed the empty bowls and cups back into the pack the king had given me, and headed back toward the castle. I needed to talk to Omni before I met with the lords so I could make sure we had all our facts in order. I figured some of the lords didn’t even know who I was, except maybe by word of mouth, so it was always better to have a game plan than to go in empty handed.

  The walk to the castle was quite long, and I was sweating by the time I arrived at the Lacuna Noctis parked behind it.

  “You look parched, Colby,” O said as I plopped down into my captain’s chair.

  “It’s hot as hell out there,” I sighed as I wiped the sweat from my brow. “I’d like to see you look any better in this heat.”

  “You know I don’t sweat,” the AI responded, and I could hear the superiority in his mechanical voice.

  “Yeah, yeah,” I drawled. “We need to go over the facts for the meeting this afternoon.”

  “I have compiled everything you asked for,” Omni replied, “and I put it into a presentation you can pull up from your handheld.”

  I took out the device, opened the new folder, and scanned through the images.

  “This is great,” I said with a grin. “Thanks, O.”

  “You’re most welcome,” the AI said.

  “Are you and Akela close to getting the electricity up and running?” I asked.

  “The castle should have power today,” Omni confirmed, “and the rest of the city tomorrow.”

  “Great,” I yawned and popped my neck.

  “We will also soon deploy the drones to go install the equipment in the homes and shops,” he informed me.

  “Alright,” I murmured, but I leaned back in my chair and closed my eyes.

  It had been a long day already, and a long couple of weeks to boot. Between the craziness of the assassination attempts, the zealots who tried to take over the kingdom, and the delays those things put on our improvements for this planet, I was mentally, and physically, exhausted.

  So, it felt good to relax for a moment and breathe. I’d been dealing with a million things the past few days, and a few moments of peace before a big meeting were always a welcome relief.

  “Colby!” Omni shouted suddenly, and I jolted awake in my chair.

  “Oh, shit,” I muttered as I rubbed my face. “Did I miss the meeting?”

  “Not at all,” the AI said. “You have forty-five minutes until they will be ready, so I suggest you take a shower, change, and do something with your hair. You look like a disaster.”

  “Thanks, O,” I grumbled at the remark, but the gratitude was sincere. I appreciated the AI letting me sleep for a while.

  I stretched, then stood up and headed toward the shower. The hot water felt amazing on my back, and I stayed an extra few minutes to just let it run over my sore body.

  After I got out of the shower, I put on the flight suit Neka had bought me back on Theron, then I combed my hair into place and stared at myself in the mirror. My two-colored eyes looked back at me, and for a moment, I thought about my life and how far I’d come from where I started as a young boy on Proto, just struggling to survive. Now, I was able to help whole planets grow, change, and even profit from the unique treasures their planets held.

  Not only that, but I had three beautiful women who I loved, and each of them loved me back. I had to say, I’d definitely come a long way since that young boy on Proto who fought every day just to stay alive.

  I gave myself my best broker smile in the mirror, then headed out toward the ramp.

  “You look much better, CT,” Omni told me as I pressed the button to open the door.

  “Thanks, O,” I chuckled. “You don’t look too bad yourself.”

  “Oh, ha, ha,” the AI replied, and I snickered.

  I took an ATV back to the castle and headed toward the king’s table, but I ran into Akela, Neka, and Sef’sla in the hallway.

  “Hey,” I said as I approached and pulled them all close to me. “Are you all ready for the meeting?”

  “I believe so,” Sef’sla mused, but a worried frown marred her beautiful face. “We are just going to tell them the ways we can improve the cities and villages, correct?”

  “That’s it,” I assured her. “I’ll do most of the talking.”

  “Okay, good,” Neka sighed as her orange cat ears drooped, “because I don’t really like to talk in front of people.”

  “Don’t worry,” Sef’sla clicked as she reached out and squeezed the cat-girl’s hand. “I’ll let everyone know what we’ve been working on.”

  I smiled at the Almort princess, she was definitely the expert when it came to plants and medicine, but Neka had shown quite an interest and had become well versed in a lot of plant care over the last few weeks. I was really proud of both of them and what they’d accomplished since we’d arrived on Zalia.

  I led the girls to the king’s table, and in the large room, I saw the king at his usual spot, and he gave us a wide grin as we entered. At the table were the other lords of the cities, along with the Elphad.

  Most of the Gelm males appeared cautious but interested as they regarded my crew and me. I did notice all of the rulers were male, which I thought was something we might strive to change in the future, but for the time being, I figured I would work with what I had, and that meant getting these guys on board.

  I doubted any of them would openly defy the king, and he assured me they would not, but I still wanted to get to know them somewhat better. I wanted them to trust me and my crew and know we only wanted to help. Sure, we wanted a little bit of profit, but that was secondary when it came to the Gelm as a whole. An entire population was much more important than a few mior crystals, and we needed to get everyone on the same page soon, since the Corporations would show up any day now.

  I started to speak, but King Grenn stopped me and offered everyone tea before we began. I almost declined, but he gave me a pushy look, and I realized he was buttering everyone up for me. He knew his tea was a treat, and he wanted to get everyone in a good mood, so I smiled at the old male and waited for him to pass the tea around to everyone.

  Once we’d all been served and taken a few sips, I finally addressed the crowd.

  “Hello,” I said, and I looked around at each of their faces. “It is an honor to meet the lords of the Gelm. I have gotten to know your king and the Elphad over the past couple of weeks, and I am now happy to have all of you here. I have made a presentation for you to show you the improvements we plan to make for your cities, and what your people will gain from them.”

  The lords regarded me warily, but interest shone in their eyes as I stood up, pulled out my pocket screen, and projected the hologram of the presentation Omni had prepared for me.

  The AI had been thorough as hell, and he’d set up the presentation so I had notes in English, but the other words were written in the Gelm native language so it was easier for them to read. We went over the amount of mior in their planet, what that would sell for to the Corporations and travelers who came looking for it, and how they could spend those credits. We also discussed what we planned to do, like get the mines going for them, electricity, soil improvements, running water and irrigation systems, plus the upgrades to the hospitals and medical supplies. Akela and Omni also went over where they planned to build the station for the travelers to land, so it wouldn’t interfere with the Gelm’s humble way of living.

  After our presentation was over, I looked out at the group. Most of the Gelm males now looked shocked, but I wasn’t sure if it was over the upgrades or the amount of money their planet stood to make off some crystals they didn
’t even really know they had.

  “Any questions?” I asked the group.

  No one said anything, so I sat back down and took a sip of my tea.

  “Thank you for your presentation,” King Grenn remarked as he stood and nodded to me, “and thank you for all you are doing for the Gelm.”

  “Yes,” one of the lords added. “It is very kind of you, but you didn’t tell us what it is that you would like in return?”

  “I have discussed it with your king already,” I replied, “but we would like a small amount of mior to fund our future endeavors. We travel to planets like yours all over and try to help them as best as we can, but we can’t do that if we can’t get there. Of course, we would help regardless, but a small payment would allow us to continue the work we do.”

  “I see,” the lord said, and he gave me a nod. “I don’t think that sounds unreasonable at all.”

  “I would hope not,” I chuckled.

  I figured a small amount was a minimal price to pay in order to be one of the most profitable planets in the galaxy. The Gelm didn’t fully understand the concept of Universal Credits yet, but they knew they would be able to trade for them, and that was good enough.

  “If there are no other questions,” I said, “then there is one more thing I would like to talk to you about.”

  “What’s that?” the king asked.

  “Weapons,” I said seriously.

  “Weapons?” Shaso echoed with a furrowed brow. “What do you mean, like swords or arrows?”

  “No.” I shook my head. “Weapons you could use in case you were ever attacked or attempted to be fooled by a traveler.”

  “Oh, my.” Grenn frowned. “Would they do that?”

  “I’m afraid not all travelers are as honest as CT,” Sef’sla spoke up, and the Gelm lords turned to her. “He saved our planet from a Corporation who meant to take over my homeland by force.”

  “Will our own weapons not stop these people?” Shaso asked.