Buying Time

by Robert Greenberger

  “Good idea,” Gomez said. Corsi thought she caught a wistful tone in her voice. Corsi suspected that the first officer wanted to be the one studying the tech. However, Corsi preferred to have Gomez along on their time-travel trip—the alternative was to have Tev in charge, and Corsi wasn’t entirely comfortable with him yet.

  “Tell them I’ve picked up a few anomalous power fluctuations,” Gomez added. “They might be the cause of the disruptions. I haven’t isolated the cause as yet.”

  “Thanks, Gomez. They’ll figure it out. Good luck.”

  “Tev, Sonya,” Abramowitz said, calling attention to her studies. “Few Ferengi had seen humans by that point, making us a cultural curiosity. Tellarites were a little more common on the planet itself. We need to be prepared to be stared at, and doing anything unobtrusive will be almost impossible.”

  “Let’s get started,” Corsi insisted.

  Abramowitz looked ready to say more, but seemed hesitant, which was not her nature, Corsi realized.

  “What is it, Carol?” Gomez prompted.

  “We’ll be women. On Ferenginar.”

  Corsi and Gomez looked at her blankly.

  “A decade ago.”

  “So?” Corsi asked, confused.

  “You’re dressed,” Tev finally interjected. He waited patiently, letting the words sink in. Corsi’s eyes narrowed with realization. Gomez caught the look, swung her head toward Abramowitz, who nodded in confirmation.

  “We’ll accomplish less than nothing while we’re dressed,” she said softly. “In fact, we’ll be breaking social taboos and calling more attention to ourselves. We’ll never get close to Lant this way.”

  “That’s why the captain sent me over—to take point,” Tev said. “I can be a…businessman, looking for some sort of deal with Lant.”

  “That makes sense. And three escorts will show you as prosperous,” Abramowitz added.

  Corsi shook her head. They were wasting time. She peeled off her duty jacket. Tev wisely said nothing, but simply opened his satchel.

  “We have to?” Gomez asked.

  “Sonya, let’s just get this over with and grab Lant,” Corsi said as she stepped out of her pants, folding them neatly and handing them to Tev. He silently placed them atop a dark console. He then withdrew a hand phaser and a strap. The security chief accepted it and considered for a moment before strapping it high on her right thigh. She hoped it looked decorative enough.

  “When in Rome,” Abramowitz muttered, pulling her shirt over her head. She too handed each article of clothing over to Tev.

  “And what sort of businessman should I be?”

  Abramowitz struggled with a boot as she replied, “Given our advanced technology, you might make favorable inroads by peddling new gear. But you can’t really sell any of it or let them look too closely.”

  “Of course not,” Tev said. “Still, I’ll need money to get started, and it’s not like we have any latinum in ship’s stores.”

  “That’s easy,” Corsi said, strolling over to the main console and helping herself to the stack of latinum slips. “It’s hopefully enough to get you in the door.”

  Tev placed the three pairs of boots below the console and then continued rummaging about, looking for the tools Gomez would need to handle the node and to impress potential customers.

  Abramowitz continued, “We’ll be your escorts, staying close. You have to make sure the Ferengi don’t touch the merchandise….”

  “Or us,” Gomez added. “It’s going to be hard to use the tricorder if I’m just window dressing.”

  “We’ll make do,” Corsi said, her tone flat. “Tev, hand me the spanner.”

  He handed the device over with a questioning glance. Corsi merely undid her tight bun of blond hair and quickly wrapped her hair around the device, making it look like an accoutrement. He nodded in approval.

  Gomez nodded and hit a control on the console that was marked in the Ferengi language. All four orbs hummed immediately. Within seconds, though, they began to glow the same way Lant’s node worked, which made Corsi feel both relieved and more apprehensive.

  * * *

  On the da Vinci bridge, Gold had completed making an entry in his log and sat back. All the wheels were in motion: his people going back in time and more of the crew going to explore the device that made that absurd statement a reality. Time travel had always concerned him given the paradoxes posed by each such use. Still, with people popping back and forth in time going back to the days of the Temporal Cold War, it was no longer a fantastic notion. He still disliked the idea that a single accident could wipe out everything he knew and cherished. Sure, there were great tragedies he’d personally like to see undone, starting with losing half his crew, but he recognized that things happened for a reason. There had to be a reason, be it cosmic plan or divine intervention.

  He looked at the banal image of the asteroid directly before the starship. Nothing about it looked artificial, but he knew better. And now he had four of his team risking their lives and the timeline to correct base greed. Was it worth it?

  Speaking of worth… He looked at his conn officer. “Wong,” he asked, “just how successful have you been with your new hobby?”

  The lieutenant hesitated in answering, which just made everyone on the bridge look directly at him. Wong finally swallowed and gave him a sheepish grin. “Well, I now own a pleasure yacht moored in dock around Risa, so you might say I’ve been pretty successful.”

  Gold let out a whistle and settled back in his chair. Some hobbies had better rewards than others.

  Chapter

  4

  It was gray, Gomez noticed. Of course, on Ferenginar, anything but gray was considered unusual. She remembered Bart saying after their last encounter with the Ferengi on the Debenture of Triple-Lined Latinum that they had dozens of words in their language for rain, and they had almost as many to describe the lighting conditions. It was a light gray, she decided, meaning the sun was probably nearing the noon position. The air was tepid, and naturally damp. They were standing on a street slick with recent rain, some of it rainbowed from some oily substance that felt rather unpleasant on Sonya’s bare feet.

  The capital city was old and overbuilt. Their architecture was scaled for the shorter Ferengi physique, so their towers didn’t seem as imposing as the skyscrapers back home on Earth. Still, there were some interesting styles on display that she would have enjoyed looking at in more depth under other circumstances.

  Completely different circumstances.

  She quickly surveyed the area and saw people approaching from the north. They were a crowd of Ferengi businessmen, all in motley attire, more interested in their padds than in the people around them. No doubt about it, they were going to stand out—a Tellarite and three human women.

  “Now that we’re here, can our nodes be fine-tuned to find Lant?” Tev asked.

  Gomez shrugged as Tev handed her a tricorder and one of the nodes. She stepped deep into a gap between two buildings while Corsi kept watch at the entranceway. Despite light traffic, no one had bothered to glance their way.

  As she worked, a pair of Ferengi walked by and eyed Tev, their eyes widening further when they spotted the women. Carol and Domenica met their gaze head-on, which caused the men to continue their conversation. Sonya was grateful, as it meant they were paying little attention to her.

  “Each node works the same but has a distinct signature,” Gomez finally said. “By screening out the four here, I’ve isolated just one…Lant’s. He’s due west of here, about a kilometer away.”

  Tev grunted in acknowledgment. “That’s where the Tower of Commerce is and our starting point. Between here and there, we need to get our hands on some latinum; these few slips can get us in the door and that’s about it. Let’s get started.”

  He held out his hand toward Gomez, who blinked in surprise and then realized she needed to hand over the tricorder. She did so, muttering a curse. She could live without clothes if she had to, but wi
thout tools, she felt truly naked.

  With that, Tev strode forward, turning left onto the street. Carol and Sonya followed, with Corsi taking up the final position.

  * * *

  No sooner had the da Vinci’s sensors showed the chroniton burst signaling time travel than Gold dispatched P8 Blue and Soloman to the asteroid for investigation. The chamber was silent as they materialized but was quickly filled with the whine from the Nasat’s tricorder.

  Soloman, built approximately the same size as a Ferengi, clambered atop the platform to study the master control panel. He nodded as he quickly took in the holographic readings from the idle equipment. With tricorder in one hand, Soloman gingerly sampled controls and waited to see what happened. Like Commander Gomez after Lt. Commander Duffy’s death, one reason he remained with the S.C.E. after losing his bond-mate 111 was his desire to explore the new and undiscovered.

  Even as he took in all the data through his dataport, Soloman glanced over his shoulder to see P8 Blue studying the chamber’s construction. As the structural systems specialist, it was her job to find clues as to which species might have built the chamber and created the device. The supposition from the outset was that they were the same, but they needed to prove that beyond a doubt.

  “It’s half a millennium old,” she observed, her tricorder waving in front of a support beam. “Basically sound architectural principals, some variations compared with about a dozen other planets but nothing that distinctive. In fact, it’s so boring, even the Borg wouldn’t assimilate it.”

  “Then maybe they spent all that time on their computer systems and time-travel technology. This is beyond anything I’ve seen before, and it’s taking me some time,” Soloman said. “Raw elements in the asteroid seem to be tapped to provide the tremendous amounts of energy required to power the equipment. What is the radiation shielding like?”

  “Standard for space construction. They clearly were not concerned about chroniton radiation like we are. That explains some of the problems we were having with navigation. They just never screened it out. Perhaps I can do something about that with the shield modulations.” Pattie used three of her eight limbs to feel around the architecture, testing the unit. Seemingly satisfied, she lifted herself up, scaling the machinery to get a better understanding of its construction and purpose.

  “Interesting.” With that, Soloman returned his full attention to the computer console. He had traced the connections to the backup systems and found the astronomical database. It seemed, at first glance, to be deeper and more complete than anything Starfleet had, possibly beyond the three dimensions used to map the universe. He determined a download would not be detrimental to the equipment, so he began setting up a link with the da Vinci’s mainframe.

  As he worked, he considered one way after another to delve deeper into the programming. The algorithms used to access the time and place databases were inventively constructed, and he relished the challenge of cracking them. However, before he could begin his next area of study, he heard Blue let out a noise. Quickly turning, he saw her standing before a control panel tucked in an alcove opposite the node columns.

  “Soloman, we have a problem,” she said.

  “Don’t we always?” he asked innocently.

  “Not like this,” she replied. “This panel is some sort of fuel consumption monitor, and it appears that Lant has left the equipment on without a required shutdown period for automatic maintenance. As a result, an imbalance in the mineral admixture has developed and there will be an overload.”

  He considered that for a moment and then offered, “Could this be why the navigation has only been difficult these last few weeks?”

  “That must be what Commander Gomez found before leaving,” she added, nodding her head quickly. Soloman definitely preferred things that added up in neat sums, so connections like this comforted him.

  “Can you stop it?”

  “I don’t even know what minerals are being tapped to provide energy, yet,” she said, sounding exasperated. “If I read this right, it will become critical in about fourteen hours.”

  “That is after the crew is due back from the past,” Soloman observed. “That gives us a two-hour margin, larger than usual.”

  “Assuming I read this right and the imbalance doesn’t interfere with their ability to return home.”

  “You have developed the humans’ knack for clouding positive news with negative information.”

  “Comes with the job, I think,” she said. Then she tapped her combadge to report to Captain Gold.

  Chapter

  5

  Tev led the away team toward the Tower of Commerce, and with every block the streets were filled with more and more Ferengi. Most stopped to point openly and stare at the women, many gap-jawed. Two even dared to pull out recording devices to take pictures, no doubt for private use and personal profit. The Tower’s shadow fell upon the quartet, at which point the Tellarite consulted the tricorder once more, confirming Lant’s signature remained ahead.

  The Tellarite had quickly reviewed the historic database on Ferenginar politics of this time. Zek was still Grand Nagus, and it was prior to Ishka’s influence on him for social reform. There remained strict adherence to the two hundred and eighty-five Rules of Acquisition, which he had also had downloaded, but had hoped Abramowitz was familiar with them in a pinch. They would need to get to the trading floor in the mammoth Tower of Commerce, the largest structure on the planet. But to do that, he’d need more latinum to be taken seriously.

  “Have any of you ever used the Exchanges?”

  “It’s not exactly on the tourist guides,” Abramowitz replied. The others used silence for negative replies. “But we’ll have to brave it. What will you do once we get in?”

  “I presume we’ll be given a line of credit and use that to build up a fortune, attracting Lant. He must come to us,” Tev said.

  “And if he doesn’t?”

  “Then, Dr. Abramowitz, you’ll have to bring him to us.”

  “That’d be fun and a chance to mete out a little justice,” she said.

  “Now, now, he had no idea we’d find his fortune-building reprehensible,” Tev continued. They were finally approaching the entrance to the Tower, which was truly a remarkable structure. Its top floors were obscured by low-lying fog and dense cloud cover. Etched in blocks carefully placed from the ground up, were the famed Rules of Acquisition. Ferengi wealth was literally built with these Rules, a lesson to all who entered the structure. The entranceway was brightly lit, bathing them in warmth and causing reflections to dance on the walls and high ceiling. Gusts of heated air buffeted them as they walked into the structure, which Tev assumed the women appreciated. A variety of house rules were listed on one wall, scrolling lazily down and then to the left as their language dictated. No one seemed to speak loudly, but there was a buzz of whispers that made Tev think he was surrounded by insects.

  A man in what appeared to be a severely cut Ferengi business suit with muted colors approached the group and gave them a long, leering look. After a few seconds’ study, he put his wrists together, hands splayed outward, and bowed deeply.

  “Welcome to the Tower of Commerce. I am Rheb, the floor manager.”

  Tev repeated the gesture and bowed, not once losing eye contact. “I am Mor glasch Tev, just in from Tellar.” He hesitated for a moment, about to introduce his companions, but thought better of it. To Rheb, they were accoutrements and not worth knowing. So be it.

  “I’ve come to negotiate some new contracts, but my meetings are not until tomorrow. But, as you say, ‘Opportunity plus instinct…’”

  “‘…equals profit,’” they finished together. Rheb laughed insincerely and Tev chuckled to be a good sport about it.

  “You must have good instincts to be so well attended.” Rheb’s very voice seemed to have a leer.

  Tev reached out a hand to stroke Gomez’s face, noting from the corner of his eye that she remained absolutely still. “I get by. My
business is research tools, and now that you’re doing more business with the Federation, I suspect you will need improved portable data storage units.”

  Rheb placed a withered knuckle under his chin and rubbed thoughtfully, refusing to take his eyes off Tev’s hand, which continued to idly caress Gomez’s chin. After a moment more, he nodded in agreement.

  “Now, I fancy the Futures Exchange,” Tev said forcefully. “If you’d be so kind as to open up a line of credit, I can—”

  The wail from Rheb startled all four Starfleet officers, and Gomez stepped backward, breaking contact with Tev. The Tellarite briefly glanced at the women and then back at their host. The look of horror on his face clearly meant Tev had made a major error.

  “We do not give just anyone a line of credit,” Rheb finally blurted out. “You can’t walk in here, prosperous as you appear to be, and think we’ll let ourselves be robbed blind.”

  “Now see here, Rheb,” Tev said, trying to sound imperious. “There’s no need for that sort of noise. Let’s see what sort of an arrangement we can work out.”

  Rheb straightened his suit, quickly regaining his dignity as befits a floor manager. Puffing out his chest, he said, “Show me the color of your latinum and we’ll be happy to make a place for you in the Exchange.”

  “You don’t think I walk around with latinum to be picked from my pocket,” Tev said, matching Rheb attitude for attitude. “This is a place of high finance, and I do not mean to insult you with a fistful of slips.” Which, of course, was precisely what he had to his name.

  “I appreciate you respecting this institution; I can see why you’ve been prosperous,” Rheb replied, sounding magnanimous. “Still, our rules do not allow me to open up a line of credit without concrete proof of one’s holdings.”

  “And how shall I do that since our two governments do not currently share economic data?”

  Before Rheb could reply to Tev’s question, Abramowitz sashayed past the Tellarite and bent low to whisper something in the manager’s ear. She leaned in close, a fingertip tracing the rim of his right ear. The manager’s eyes went wide and he suddenly seemed to be having trouble breathing, but Tev held still. When she was done whispering, Rheb reached into his coat and withdrew a slim padd. He tabbed a few controls and added a thumbprint to the bottom of the screen.