Star Trek: Corps of Engineers: Aftermath by unknow

Author:unknow
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Gallery Books
Published: 2007-03-15T00:00:00+00:00

Little had changed in the Tower of Commerce, Tev observed, as the odd group reentered the trading floor. It being three years down the line and later in the day besides, he hoped there was a different floor manager on duty. The fewer who recognized him and the women, the better. The level of activity seemed as cacophonous as before, but there were definitely fewer stares. The Ferengi were an adaptable people, he knew, and the sight of Federation citizens—dressed or otherwise—was more commonplace. Good, he concluded. Keeping close to Lant, he guided the hapless trader to a thin spot in the action and gave him a slight push.

“Okay, I just need something to lose on,” Lant muttered. “Oh the pain. We’re not supposed to try and lose our money, we’re not built that way.”

Tev snarled. “You are today.”

“Of course I am,” Lant said slowly, scanning the scrolling figures, catching on to the day’s rhythms. He withdrew his padd, checked the account balance and then beckoned to a mauve-jacketed trader. “Ten bars on the kanar crop yield,” he ordered.

“I can’t stand that stuff,” Abramowitz offered.

“Well, you’re in luck,” Lant said archly. “Blight decimated the annual crop on Cardassia and the reports should be coming through any minute. Prices went through the roof and I’ll lose. Okay, that’s one loss on the books; let’s see what else is a sure thing….”

Tev refused to let Lant move more than a foot away from him, and they inched closer and closer to the trading pit. The Ferengi’s voice grew shriller as he placed order after order, ranging from octotriticale to trillium, as the greedy trader accepted them all without comment. As the first hour neared an end, it was obvious Lant was losing lots of money, but the traders said nothing. The pace was dizzying and Tev couldn’t keep track of all the activity, but he watched Lant’s padd and saw the numbers steadily decreasing. This time, no one was approaching them and offering a private room. Losers could remain in place, he concluded, and that was fine with him.

Tev did notice that even though human women were less an object of curiosity, they were nevertheless an infrequent sight in the Tower. Quite a few businessmen and traders strolled back and forth, sneaking peeks at Tev and his “assistants.” The occasional expressions of disgust showed that social mores remained in place and most would prefer the women be kept at Tev’s hotel, naked but still out of sight. He could tell from their expressions that they too shared the sentiment—but they could not separate now. Timing would prove critical.

The second hour passed and Tev grew impatient with Lant’s rate of loss. It should have been over by now, but even a time traveler can be surprised. There was a forgotten rally in kevas that handsomely profited the group. Lant would have to make more transactions to dump the profit and each action seemed to take greater consideration or, perhaps, there was greater reluctance. Tev loomed over Lant and asked about the timetable.

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