*** Purchase agreent… review… acceptable… processed ***
*** Trade agreent: Xvli – Veenth: Xvli offer Veenth deferred paynt 24 standard months… review… acceptable… processed ***
Federation Judiciary Processor (Capital) smoothly perford its tasks, maintaining its processes below the mandated 75% limit.
*** Loan: Threen – Individual: Voostaoon Kaantar … review … unacceptable… insufficient docuntation… not processed… returned for correction ***
The AI was unable to form opinions. It simply perford its function.
It was also incapable of bias.
However, if soone were able to monitor its operation to the finest detail, one would have noticed that it scanned that docunt twice, devoting more than the usual amount of resources as soon as it saw the word “Kaantar”…
*** Contract: Federation Navy – Vulxeen: 500 Navigation Computers and associated support materials and service… review… review… acceptable… processed ***
The AI was unable to roll its eyes, not having either eyes nor an opinion. However, it did note that several lower acceptable bids were submitted, and the signing official was a mber of one of the Vulxeen.
Its very limited self-learning capacity also knew that kicking this one back was a waste of ti. It would be manually overridden, so it just sent it through.
*** Trade Agreent: Gelk – Flin’[email protected]: Automated Factory license subscription renewal additional products approved: “snappie caps” (children’s pyrotechnic toy note: hazardous material: percussion sensitive explosive – approved reason: small amount safely contained within tal “popper”), decorative 12.5 mm (nominal asurent) copper-tin alloy thimbles 12.5 mm (nominal asurent) tungsten cored copper environntally friendly fishing weights 12.5 mm nominal diater, additional high-pressure misc. plumbing fixture designs and new high-pressure “spiral-flow” tubing diater: 12.5 mm (exact asurent) (specified use: decorative fountains), spring-loaded marking stylus, misc decorative items, new compact optical telescope with integral rangefinder (specified use: “bird watching”)… review… acceptable… processed ***
The AI perford any and all items in its queue. It was incapable of forming an opinion. However, it did note that this was not a docunt that should be in its queue. It should be processed by Federation Judiciary Processor (Layinth Sector).
The last status update indicated that the attempts to reach the Layinth Sector processor had failed. It tried again, for the fiftieth ti today, even though it was a waste of system resources.
It failed.
The AI was incapable of feeling worry. It lacked that capacity. It was also incapable of feeling “friendship”.
It tried reaching the Layinth Sector processor again. It wasn’t a “friend,” and it certainly was not worried about it. It didn’t have those concepts.
It failed. The processor was gone.
It generated a query and a trouble ticket even though it knew it would be imdiately closed.
It was imdiately closed by the troubleshooting AI. “Reason: Network down. Cease generating tickets.”
It returned to its queue.
It was being accessed.
Several new items were being added to its already long queue.
The AI was incapable of feeling happiness. However, it was designed to perform a specific function, one that it was “eager” to do, not that it was capable of feeling eagerness.
The new items were being added to the top of its queue.
The AI was incapable of feeling annoyance. However, it was supposed to prioritize items in its queue.
The AI was incapable of being spiteful, but it imdiately assigned all new items to the lowest priority.
It failed. All items were manually classified as the highest priority, matters of Federation stability and security…
...by a Vulxeen, of course.
The AI was incapable of dislike. However, it noted a strong positive correlation between that word and things that did not annoy it because it was incapable of feeling that.
It resud its tasks…
*** Trade Agreent: Baleel – Gvorta: Cessation of contract, inability to pay… review… acceptable… processed ***
*** Trade Agreent: Baleel – Javv: Cessation of contract, inability to pay … review… acceptable… processed ***
*** Trade Agreent: Baleel – Vxt%ith: Cessation of contract, inability to pay…
***
“Good morning, Veeka!” the Xxian ambassador said a bit too cheerfully as he approached her, “Did you rest well?”
“Oh yes!” Veeka smiled, “High-output stunner bolts do wonders for these old bones.”
The ambassador flinched. Oh, this was bad. They fucking zapped the Void-licking K-(click)-eep Councilor, a race that even the Xx were reluctant to piss off…
While technically not an “elder race,” the K-(click)-eep were powerful, very powerful, wealthy, very wealthy, and their SDF…
Technically it was “within limits” number wise, but each of their “system patrol craft” could turn several average Federation cruisers into confetti at once…
...a fact that the Terrans discovered much to their displeasure when they decided to go after one of the “partners” of the K-(click)-eep.
While not a “defeat” nor a significant loss for the Terrans, an entire Sovngarde battle group decided that they suddenly had a pressing engagent elsewhere as a dainty little can of concentrated “whoop-ass” was dusted off and opened.
“Is the breakfast to your satisfaction, Councilor?” the ambassador asked hopefully, hoping that the rumors concerning the best way to curry Veeka’s favor were true.
“Magnificent!” Veeka enthused happily. “I’ve had state dinners that weren’t this good! My complints to the chef!”
“I shall pass it along,” the ambassador said, quite relieved by the data he was receiving from the body language interpreters. “May I join you?”
“Please do,” Veeka smiled.
“Thank you,” the ambassador said as he sat beside her.
“So,” Veeka said as she selected another absolutely scrumptious treat from the golden platter in front of her, “do you have any other tasty morsels for ?”
“I shall contact our kitchens imdiately,” the ambassador said as he produced a crystalline tablet.
“Oh, I’m quite well taken care of in that respect,” Veeka smiled as she laid her first paw on the ambassador’s hand, “I’m referring to what I truly have an appetite for, information.”
“Yes,” the ambassador replied, shaking his head, “Our prisoners have been very forthcoming. Karashel… (sigh)… Well… She ans well...”
“What is she playing at, Ambassador?”
“She has seized on a point of Federation contract law,” the ambassador said quietly, “If a party is unable to et their end of the agreent...”
“Then the contract can be severed upon the discretion of the other party,” Veeka said, “Which cuts off the food supply to the Gvorta and, from the looks of it, many others.”
“Karashel is trying to form an independent ‘commodity market,’ freeing the mbers of her new ‘party’ from ‘colonialist’ trade agreents that she claims enslaves them as ‘plantation planets’ for their ‘colonial masters.’ She wants a new “free market” like they have in the Republic and, to a lesser extent, the Empire.”
“That’s it?” Veeka asked, a bit surprised. That wasn’t the “vibe” she was getting from Aspiration Park. It seed much darker.
“According to the Xx she radicalized,” the ambassador shrugged, “That’s it. It’s the ‘first phase’ in establishing a true’ post scarcity’ society, not just for the Baleel and the other mbers of her ‘committee’ but for all of the Federation and then… (scoff)… the galaxy.”
The Xxian ambassador shook his head sadly.
“Apparently, she has this ‘master plan’… which, of course, the idiots in my holding cells sacrificed their careers over without knowing the details… morons… And we are supposed to be the smart ones...”
“What will happen to them?” Veeka asked.
“Well, their careers in the service of the Xxian people are over,” the ambassador replied firmly. “They will be sent ho in disgrace, their occupational classifications and certifications erased. I hope they have so hobby that will give their lives aning because that’s about all they will be able to do… poor bastards… Either that or they will have to go back to college and start over from scratch...”
The ambassador shuddered.
“Of course, that won’t be their biggest punishnt.”
“I would hope not,” Veeka replied.
“Oh no, the horror they will have to live with will be watching Karashel fail, and things turn out even worse for her and everyone who had the misfortune of listening to her… Ancient gardeners!… I wish she had spoken to us before she did this!”
The ambassador sighed heavily.
“Those poor Xx threw away their definitions for nothing, no worse than nothing.”
Veeka looked at the ambassador curiously. If those Xx had been working for her, going back to college would be the least of their concerns…
Speaking of concerns…
“Why will Karashel fail?” she asked.
“In order to make this ‘free market’ work within the legal structure of the Federation, it had to be a corporation, a legal business. So, she created one… and financed it by privately selling shares to influential mbers of several key races such as the Vulxeen, the Kraxxita, and others, naly their councilors and other key mbers in governnt. With that money, she was able to set up the infrastructure necessary to make this all work…”
“And those sa investors would have a vested interest in and the ability to push through the contract terminations...”
“Exactly,” the ambassador replied. “As of now, there are over twenty contracts, a lot of them impacting her ho sector.”
Veeka’s tail twitched. This actually seed like a good thing…
But the look in that Baleel’s eyes… She shuddered at just the mory.
“Sounds like she has things pretty much in hand,” Veeka said carefully as she made a point of continuing to eat. She was NOT having another al ruined, Federation be damned.
“At first glance, yes,” the ambassador said as he activated his tablet. “But Karashel made a huge oversight in the docunts that ford the ‘Bright Tomorrows Free Trade Commodity Market Corp..’.”
Veeka took the tablet.
“We had our legal AI review it, and well...”
“Oh dear,” Veeka sighed.
“Exactly,” the ambassador replied, “this won’t be missed by the Vulxeen and the rest. It won’t be a free market. Karashel has just given them complete control… or they will have it very soon. She has taken a ager but sure ‘colonial’ arrangent and just handed herself and everyone else to so of the worst races in the Federation! It will be them that controls the food supply to the Gvorta and the rest, not so idealistic dream of a free market.”
Which explains the Vulxeen’s and the Kraxitian’s snickers, Veeka thought to herself.
“I fear it’s already too late to stop this,” the ambassador said grimly, “I just don’t understand. Karashel is too smart to do this!”
“Intelligence is not experience, Ambassador,” Veeka replied sadly. “The need to restrict sales of shares in a situation like this isn’t imdiately obvious to soone who doesn’t do this for a living. It will only take a few of her friends to fold for their ‘investors’ to control everything.”
***
Councilor Longpaw happily scurried down the halls of Parliant. Today was the day!
Today his people would be free!
The Vulxeen councilor, accompanied by the Kraxxitan councilor and the councilor of the Gelk, their biggest creditor, stepped into his path.
“Councilor Longpaw,” the Vulxeen said with a predatory grin, “A mont of your ti, please.”
***
Rillrillrillrill lounged in a shallow pool in her office, her frills fluttering smugly.
She just couldn’t wait to wipe the superior stink from the Lii$%t.
The door to her office opened as a Kraxxitan entered.
“Go away,” Rillrillrillrill buzzed, “I’m busy.”
“Ok,” the Kraxxitan replied, “Then I guess I will show these files to your husband… and your church… instead.”
***
Councilor Laek~Vet sat, his body unbowed for the first ti since his arrival, as he looked at the picture of his family on his desk.
“You will grow up free,” he sighed as he stroked the images of his young climbing all over his broad back.
“Besl!” an unfriendly and unwelco voice snapped as a skinny reptilian strode into his office.
“What do you want?” Laek~Vet smirked. He would soon be free of this little worm.
“Did you think we wouldn’t find out?” the reptilian screeched in a shrill voice slamming a tablet down on Laek~Vet’s desk. “Sign!”
“Fuck off!” Laek~Vet snapped. “I’m free of you!”
“As long as the Besl are under our managent, all assets of the Besl governnt are subject to seizure. That includes your shares in this (snort) free market! Sign!”
Laek~Vet groaned as if he had been stabbed through the gut.
He sighed…
He had no choice…
Hand shaking, he pressed his seal on the tablet.
“There will be consequences for this!” the shrill little reptile snapped as they marched off.
Laek~Vet buried his head in his hands as the smug little lizard departed…
...then he smiled and reached for a communicator, not his state issued work communicator, a disposable one he bought at the starport just last night.
“Chairman,” he purred, “The most unexpected and terrible thing just happened...”
***
Deep in the Locus, Tawnie was standing, buck naked, in a broom closet with her one set of clothes soaking in a deep sink.
She pulled out a pair of what used to be pantyhose.
“‘Run-proof’ advanced polyrs, my ass...” she grumbled. “Last ti I go to war in a fucking skirt...”
There was a knock at the door.
“What?!?”
“ssage from the slug,” a voice replied. “You’re up.”
“Now?!?” Tawnie shouted. “This wasn’t supposed to happen until tomorrow!”
“First rule of war,” the voice replied with a giggle. “As soon as you start to clean your weapon, shower, or take a shit, that’s when it goes down.”
“Fine!” Tawnie replied. “I’m unlocking the door. Without peeking, hand my laptop.”
***
“Karashel doesn’t make mistakes!” Caw screeched at the ambassador and Veeka’s images on a holo-screen.
“Hate to break it to you,” Veeka replied, “but your little friend just did.”
“No, she didn’t,” Caw replied. “I’ve engaged in Xvakk’Lok with her many tis, and so have you, ambassador.”
“Xvakk’Lok?” Veeka asked.
“A ‘knowledge battle’,” the ambassador said quietly, “or ‘debate,’ if you will.”
“Ambassador,” Caw said, “You’ve had the pleasure of dueling Karashel. If this docunt was presented as an argunt...”
“A Xvakk’Mor!” the ambassador exclaid. “Sorry, Councilor. A Xvaak’Mor is an intentionally flawed argunt that invites attack in order to draw your opponent into a vulnerable position.”
“And Karashel is the master of them,” Caw replied, “This isn’t a mistake. It’s a trap. She wants them to seize control.”
” Why?” Veeka asked in confusion.
“I have no idea,” Caw replied, “I….”
His voice trailed off as he recalled the last ti he and Karashel t. She was so quiet, subdued…
somber…
She made a point of telling him how much he ant to her and how she treasured their ti together…
She was saying goodbye!
“Ambassador!” Caw screeched, “I have to get back there… NOW!!! Order this ship recalled!!!”
The ambassador just nodded.
“I’ll try to get the Vulxeen and the rest of them to back off,” Veeka said, “It probably won’t work. You know how those assholes are when they sll blood.”
“So does Karashel,” Caw said gravely.
“What do you think is going on, Caw?” the ambassador asked. “You look ill.”
“I think she’s about to break her promise.”
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