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  Jack replied, "Maybe we're in need of a new strategy. The Tamarin are in control. If Garrett has been kept alive, the Tamarin have him. I say we go to Parmesen, grab a few high ranking officials and ask them where he is. Someone there must know."

  I said, "Quan, do we have any truth drugs that would be effective on Tamarin?"

  Darba held up his hand. "If you want something that is effective, you will need a derivative of dangat root. It's been used for centuries by my people. Dry it, pulverize it, boil it down to a paste and mix it with a beverage. All very simple and highly effective. We made use of it as children when building relationships for play companies."

  Jack frowned. "Sounds like a terrible childhood."

  Darba replied, "I have to disagree. That analysis would depend on one's perspective. Being good at business and trade were the chief desires of most every Tamarin child. What was the Human alternative?"

  Jack nodded as he thought. "Well, we had snipe hunting, rocketball, and pretty much any feats of athleticism."

  Darba referenced his physiology. "As you can see, athletic endeavors were not pursued by my people."

  Jack chuckled, "I guess not."

  Darba continued, "Find a source of dangat, and I will assist with the questioning about your friend."

  Jack nodded as he looked into his comm camera. "I think that sounds like an excellent idea."

  Joni said, "Setting coordinates now. Darba, I take it you could point us at someone to grab?"

  Darba answered, "Any member of the trade board would be a candidate. You are already familiar with the building. When a member leaves the board room, follow them until isolated and sweep them away."

  Joni replied, "You're starting to sound like us."

  Darba replied, "I can't say that I agree with what my people are doing. I fear for the rest of our population should things go awry. We are mostly a good and honest people. The few are putting us all at risk while seeking out less than honorable profits."

  We were soon in orbit around Parmesen, with Joni traveling down to the surface. She powered into the massive trade building and into the room where another session of the trade court was in session. A metal supplier was being tried for failure to deliver a load of steel to the military.

  Joni said to Darba, "So I just wait for one of them to leave the court?"

  Darba replied, "It looks as though the prosecution is about to rest. They will break immediately after and again before gathering for their decision."

  The prosecutor said, "And for this reason, a guilty verdict should be returned. Amon Harisa knew when he signed the contract that he would not be able to deliver. In the eyes of the people, this is a simple open and shut case."

  The prosecutor returned to his alcove.

  The defending attorney stepped forward. "Your honors, what we see here today is another example of the military running roughshod over good honest businessmen like Mr. Harisa. Surely we can all see that this is just another attempt at a resource grab by the defense league. The stock in question in this contract was in fact taken, just before its delivery, by the same league who has filed this false claim. Mr. Harisa has done everything in his power to support the defense of the corporation. This claim should be dismissed with the contract in question designated as being fulfilled."

  The defense attorney returned to his alcove. Two guards came in to escort the defendant back to his holding cell. The members of the trade board rose and exited through a doorway behind their high bench.

  Joni followed. "Eight heading that way and three this. I'll follow the three."

  After turning a corner, two of the boardmen continued down the hall while a third broke off into a separate room.

  Joni said, "OK, here we go. Get ready to sweep."

  As the door closed behind him the boardman disrobed and entered a stall.

  Joni began to giggle. "He is not going to be happy with getting taken like this."

  Jack said, "Can we at least let him finish? I'm sure nobody wants to clean up an accident out there in the bay if we sweep him up too soon."

  Jack's advice was taken. Several minutes later, a terrified boardman was standing naked in the middle of the docking bay.

  Go was waiting with a blaster. "Come with me, please."

  The boardman followed and was soon standing on the deck of the bridge.

  "Your name?" I asked.

  The boardman looked around. "Tawn Bronten. What is this place? Who are you?"

  I gestured toward a chair. "I would suggest you fully cooperate, Mr. Bronten. Anything less will not work in your favor. Now, please sit."

  Tawn complied. "May I have my robe? Who are you?"

  I replied as Joni tossed him his robe, "Who we are is for us to know. We will be asking you a few pointed questions. You can choose to answer truthfully, or there will be consequences. Once we have completed our questions, you will be given dangat root and asked the same questions again. You are familiar with dangat are you not?"

  Tawn Bronten nodded. "Every Tamarin is familiar with dangat. Ask whatever questions you like."

  Joni said, "You had a Human in your custody recently, a Human named Garrett Rourke. Where is he now?"

  The boardman replied, "I am familiar with the Human; however, I do not know his whereabouts."

  Joni stepped closer. "Has he been in the trade facility since you falsely tried and convicted Knog Beutcher?"

  Tawn shook his head. "I have neither seen nor heard of a Human in captivity. The defense league is running all government offices now. Unless he was being tried for breach of contract, he would not be here. I would suggest you take this matter up with the defense league."

  Darba stepped from around a corner. "I believe he tells the truth. The boardmen are not ones for dishonesty or deception."

  Tawn stood. "A Tamarin? You are working with these people? And... Have we met before?"

  Darba nodded. "I am Darba Wampros. First diplomat with the initial Grotus negotiations. It is an honor to stand before you, Mr. Bronten."

  Tawn replied, "Honor? I was pulled from... private business. That is how you honor the board of trade?"

  Darba bowed. "I apologize, sir. If what you say is true, that the defense league is now running things, it is a sad day to be Tamarin."

  Tawn returned to his seat. "I suppose it doesn't matter anymore, Mr. Wampros. The politicians own the military and they have taken full control. Our court has become nothing more than a means to legitimize the seizing of private property. This war has become all-consuming of all resources. The people aren't yet aware, but food rationing will begin within a week. It will be used as a political tool to keep the populace in line."

  Darba asked, "You said there are politicians behind this? Who?"

  Tawn said, "You have no doubt heard of Vagra Withers, the wealthiest man in the corporation?"

  Darba nodded. "Everyone knows who he is."

  Tawn continued, "He teamed with Galat Carhe and Moortim Blon. Using their military connections, they staged a silent coup. The trade board had no choice but to relinquish our power."

  I looked at Darba, "So we find any one of these three men and we find Garrett?"

  Darba glanced at me. "I believe that to be the case, Mr. Beutcher."

  Go gestured toward our new guest. "What do we do with him?"

  Darba said, "You have to release him. He has been honest with us."

  Jack chuckled. "Release? I don't think so. We send him back and he blabs to the military that we are coming. I think we just have to find a place to house our new guest until we've had a chance to get Garrett."

  I said, "Take him down to the crew quarters. He can make friends with Harden while we're looking."

  Go winced. "You sure that's a good idea?"

  I nodded. "Just take him down there. We can't leave him roaming around up here."

  Darba sighed. "My apologies, Mr. Bronten. I wish there was something I could do."

  Tawn replied, "Mr. Wampros, I would like to discuss the
state of affairs with you at some point if that's possible. The Tamarin Corporation is no longer the Tamarin Corporation. Perhaps our friends here could help change that."

  Go gestured toward the door with his blaster. Tawn Bronten rose and walked in front of him.

  I turned to Darba. "I wouldn't put much trust in him yet, Darba."

  Darba replied, "Until such time as they have consumed dangat root, I wouldn't trust any Tamarin. Power is corrupting, and those in power will have their followers. Perhaps we should attempt to acquire a portion of dangat while we are here?"

  I nodded. "After we pay another visit to Kral."

  Chapter 3

  * * *

  A visit to Kral and an extended search for Garrett yielded no results. Joni's level of frustration only grew. Our next jump was to Tasia, the political capital of the Tamarin. Joni jumped her fighter, the Stinger, down to the surface, parking in a field a short distance from the buildings known as the Political Towers. Three tall green-glass buildings shot fifty stories up into the mauve-tinted sky of Tasia.

  Joni powered into the first of the three towers. "This is definitely a vital activity center for the Tamarin. People are walking everywhere and most seem to be hurried."

  Jack said, "I'm guessing they might be a little busy, having just acquired six galaxies. The logistics of managing that have to be horrific."

  Joni rounded the corner of a large hallway and was confronted with a set of wide arching doors. She drifted through into the room beyond, revealing a massive chamber with a thousand occupied seats arranged in a curved pattern. A podium was mounted on a short walkway that jutted into the center of the seats. A Tamarin spokesman stood at the podium.

  "Ladies and gentlemen... the auctioning of political jurisdictions will commence in about two hours. Bids will be taken into consideration for the remainder of the day with the first decisions being handed down in the morning. The six galaxies have already been conveniently divided into sectors, with sector governance being auctioned first. Remember, colonies won't come until sectors have been decided upon and contracts signed. We know this will be a big undertaking for most of you, and as such, initial sector contracts will be given for a three year duration."

  The room broke into a clamor.

  The speaker pressed and held a buzzer until talk subsided. "Thank you. We realize these contracts are of short duration, but given the time frames we have, they are the best we can do. For those of you who are bidding on colonies, I would suggest that you contact those bidding on the sectors which those colonies are in. Use that information to make an attempt to be part of the sector bid by that individual. If you are allied with a member who becomes a sector governor, well, I would have to believe it will give you an advantage when it comes to your colony bids. And people, please realize this isn't a perfect process. If your bid is accepted and a contract signed, you must be prepared to move immediately. Failure to do so will be considered a breach of contract and I'm certain none of you want to be involved with the trade courts."

  The buzzer was once again pressed. "Sector auctions will commence in two hours. Thank you."

  Joni said, "They aren't wasting any time, are they?"

  Jack replied, "Handing out the spoils of war. I would bet most of these sector governors plan on stripping the wealth and running back here with it."

  Darba shook his head. "No. This is serious business. Anyone seen to be a poor caretaker of their sector will surely lose their head. If there is indeed a triad running this show, they will not be tolerant of those who only seek to enrich themselves. These sectors will be considered valuable assets that need to be managed, not looted."

  Go said, "At least that sounds like as good a deal as our citizens recently had."

  I replied, "We don't know that. Darba, do the Tamarin use slave labor?"

  Darba nodded. "Extensively. One of the punishments for contract breach is servitude. Depending on the size of the infraction, that servitude can be extended to children, aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings, and parents. Typically, the board does not allow servitude beyond one generation, but I have seen it extended beyond to cover the unborn as well."

  Go frowned. "OK, so maybe that doesn't sound so good."

  I said, "Joni, spend some time searching those towers. I think we'll likely have a view of the triad once the auction starts. If we want to grab one of them we'll only need to follow them afterward."

  Joni replied, "I'll start here and work my way up."

  Joni powered forward, drifting from one room to another before powering up through the next floor. Again her efforts bore no fruit. Garrett was not being held in the political towers of Tasia. With her search complete, Joni settled back into the auditorium where the auction was to be held.

  A speaker stood at the podium, sounding the buzzer until the attendees settled down. All eyes were on the Tamarin at the podium.

  A display screen behind the speaker came to life. "Auctions will begin in the galaxy known as the Sextans. This series is for the sector governance rights for that galaxy. If you have no interest in the Sextans, please remain silent and allow those who do to proceed with their bidding. The Sextans galaxy is divided into eighteen sectors. After careful evaluation of assets and to speed the process, we will begin taking bids for the Alpha sector. Please keep in mind that only bids in New Alliance currency will be accepted. Bids are restricted to offers in credits with the minimum bid for Sextans-Alpha starting at thirty-two billion. Do we have any offers?"

  Six individuals stood. Using a handheld electronic device, bids were submitted. At fifty-four billion credits, the rights to govern the Sextans–Alpha sector were passed to the winning bidder. Over a period lasting two-and-a-half hours, the other seventeen sectors in the Sextans galaxy were auctioned off. All told, three hundred thirty-six billion credits were exchanged.

  Go asked, "How are they supposed to profit from a sector they paid fifty billion credits for? I would think you'd have to sell off half the sector to make your money back."

  Jack replied, "From what I understood from earlier on, if you win the bid, you govern for three years. At the end of that period the asset again goes up for auction. The winning bid will be paid to the then-current governor. If they manage their asset correctly, they could recoup their initial investment plus a substantial increase. It gives everyone incentive to maximize the value of the asset they're governing."

  Darba said, "That was the model used during the early expansion of the Tamarin Corporation. It insures active participation by the winning individual. If they fail, they are placing their initial investment at risk. It has proven to be an effective means to maximize potential value, and would be at least partially responsible for our success as a corporation. It discourages those who would pillage and build palaces unto themselves."

  I responded, "While that sounds ingenious on the surface, the dirty underlying secret will be the degree to which the populace is forced to labor for those goals. Anyone who has been living the life of leisure will not be happy with having to contribute their fair share of labor."

  Darba nodded. "For those who would otherwise be indigent, this will provide a fair workplace. For everyone else it may be a harsh reality as compared to their prior lives. These governors will push the people to be productive. However, the people of a sector will also be viewed as an asset. If they are pushed too hard, their productivity will decline and the value of the asset will be diminished. The governors will have to strike a balance where the people will be rewarded as well. If we look at the Tamarin worlds as a model, the corporation is in good standing with the people."

  Jack said, "If this happens, it'll be an interesting experiment. Humans tend to tire of authoritarian government after a very short while. I would expect most others are the same."

  Darba shrugged. "It will be up to these governors to insure that is not the case. Again, labor assets must be happy to be productive for the long term."

  We watched as the sector auctions moved to the Wolf-
Lundmark-Melotte, Sawblade, and then Andromeda. When the Andromeda-Gamma sector was set to be auctioned, the auctioneer was diverted by an aide.

  After returning to the podium the auctioneer said, "It has come to my attention that the Gamma sector has an issue. The minimum bid will be reduced by 20 percent to accommodate those who remain interested. It would seem that a freighter was hijacked from the Domingo colony. Thirty thousand colonists had armed themselves with conventional, kinetic weapons. The freighter was taken to Logilla, the capital of Gamma and the home of the Mogglia family.

  "The freighter landed beside the Mogglia compound. An assault was conducted and the Mogglia family forces were overrun. The Domingos executed the Mogglias for what they considered prior crimes. A number of high ranking officials on the planet were taken into custody and executed as well.

  "The situation however, has turned. The Domingos have peacefully returned to their colony, laying down their arms. Governance on the capital world is chaotic at the moment, but we expect order to be restored well before these auctions are complete."

  The Gamma sector auction went off without a hitch. A heated bidding war pushed the winning bid above the expected amount with the winner beaming with pride over her victory.

  The sectors of the Milky Way went up for bid next, and finally those of the Triangulum. When bidding on the last sector, Triangulum–Omega had completed, the Triad running the Tamarin Corporation had been enriched by nearly twelve trillion New Alliance credits.

  With the sector auctions over, the Triad members left the auditorium, taking pneumatic elevators to the fiftieth floor. Joni powered after them.

  Jack, followed by Go, left the bridge for the docking bay. Joni settled in on the fiftieth floor of political tower two as the wealthiest and most powerful individuals ever to rule the seven galaxies sat in ornate chairs around a small round table.

  Vagra Withers said, "Gentlemen, what shall we do with our newfound wealth?"