A Sol Invictan saying

Where there's value you'll find Sol Invictus. Where there's profit you'll find the Royal Family

Octavian walks over to the chair by my mother and collapses onto it. His legs flayed out over one of the arm rests, he looks over at me with a wide grin. “I’m going to be honest, you didn’t have the best odds. I was sure that girl was going to win but you managed to turn it around. Not going to lie Cael, I was a little impressed.”

I wave away his compliment and lean forward, eyes narrowing. From everything I know about him, Octavian is motivated purely by his own interest. While the direction of that interest seems to vary like a spinning vane in the wind, it always seems to serve some greater purpose.

Perhaps that is why I find it so odd that he’s here right now. The deal that he made with the old rulers of Everwall stated that we’d join the Market of Sol Invictus if we won. But, if that’s the case, then there’s no conceivable reason for him to be here. He isn’t the type to boast or brag or humiliate. His mocking is always sharp but for a purpose. Which suggests …

I let out a single laugh. “I’m not bound by your Contract, am I?”

His previously grinning face goes flat and his eyes close for a brief second. He reaches up with his hand and, in a startlingly human display, pinches the bridge of his nose. Legs come off the armrest and rest upon the floor as his demeanor seems to shift to become a tad more professional. “Am I that obvious?”

I grin. “Your unpredictably predictable and there’s no other reason for you to be here right now.”

He lets out a sigh and tosses a glare over to my mom. “You know, I’d thought that you were going to fix my little blunder with that mental command. Would have cemented his position under the Contract. But no, it didn’t work, of course. Like everything else on this damn planet it’s just complications upon complications.”

My grin turns flat as I fight to keep a grimace off my face. He had seen the attempted command? My mother and I had been the only two people in the room at that point … if he doesn’t need physical presence to spy on us who knows what else he has managed to overhear or see. But then, he is probably revealing this information for a specific reason.

My hand, positioned down by my leg, clenches tightly. A part of me just wants to reach out with my new power and force Octavian to swear to no longer spy on me but I know that isn’t one of the diplomatic, or even realistic, options before me. No, I am a representative for an entire planet now and I need to learn how to conduct myself in a manner befitting my position.

“Your spying aside, and we’ll get to that later, what exactly is a Market? I want the full truth, not some tale you spin to paint your people in a good light.”

He clicks his tongue and leans back. “A market is basically a place for different people or civilizations to trade goods or services through the Gate network. It’s integrated into Genesis so we transactions can be conducted across different waves.”

Elias interrupts him. “And what is the benefit of Genesis being involved? Wouldn’t it be better to keep ‘certain’ transactions off of any sort of books?”

Snorting, Octavian responds. “Kid, you’ve obviously never dealt with the Gate network. Travel is incredibly expensive, and anything not registered with Genesis is almost prohibitively so. Shit, it took me nearly five thousand Sols just to come to this backwater planet. But if your transaction is integrated with Genesis than most of the cost of transport is negated.”

The implication lights up in my mind. If trade amongst different planets is so important that the Empire of Sol Invictus is sending out representatives for new opportunities, then that means I have significantly more negotiating power than Octavian is letting on.

I need a bit more information before I know my exact position though. “So what kind of goods are traded between planets? You’d think Skills would allow anyone to learn what they need to make almost anything.”

“Sure, you can learn enough of most Skills to try and hack away at some task but you’ll never master it as well as the craftspeople who’ve dedicated their entire lives to a single pursuit. I mean, there’s a woman on my homeworld who’s spent her entire life working on Flower Arrangement. I swear on my life, you’ve never seen a more beautiful bouquet than the ones that come from her shop.”

I growl. “What kind of goods though?”

Despite his obvious frustration, he grins ever so slightly at my annoyed voice. “Okay, okay, calm down. Look, I think you’ll realize pretty quickly that not every planet has the same resources. Different plants, animals, or even liquids can only be found in certain places. Scarcity creates value kid.”

In a theatrical flourish, he dramatically finishes, “And where there’s value you’ll find Sol Invictus.”

Ignoring him, I turn to Elias. I still don’t trust him fully, but I know that, as long as our interests align, he is an invaluable resource in matters regarding our fledgling economy. “So, what do you think?”

He holds back a snarky comment, visible swallowing it, and then says, “Based on what I can tell, he’s not lying. His merchants have all said basically the same thing, with slight variations based on what they are trying to sell.”

He stands up out of his chair and walks behind Octavian. His step is filled with bounce, gleeful and cheery as he makes his way behind the chair. Glancing up at Elias with a bemused expression, Octavian confidently raises a single eyebrow. Elias leans in and smacks his hands down upon both of Octavian’s shoulders.

“Now, the interesting part of this little discussion is why Sol Invictus wants us to join their little market. Would our esteemed Primus like to deign us with a guess?” he says, enjoying himself far too much.

My only response is to stare at him, letting the silence continue until it begins to reach uncomfortable levels. Elias, obviously disappointed that his fun has ended, sighs and then continues. “Part of the reason that they are so interested in our world is because we have resources that they don’t have. Specifically, the metal that Alejandro has spent so long experimenting with.”

My increased Perception allows me to see the strained cheek muscles, the clenching of his jaw, and the mild color difference as he reacts to Elias’s words. All of these small signs would have evaded my attention previously but the bonus from becoming Primus has given me an almost supernatural awareness of my surroundings.

“I got one of them rip-roaring drunk and he gave up a single word. Hasn’t spoken a word to me since so I think it’s pretty clear that they weren’t supposed to tell us about it. Was that some sort of order that you gave them, Octavian? You didn’t want us realizing we had Vertasium?” he finishes, fingers digging into his captive’s shoulders.

To Octavian’s credit, he maintains his somewhat straight face, only giving away his true emotion with subtle facial reactions that are almost instantaneous. There isn’t a doubt in my mind that everyone else in the room, with the possible exception of Julian with his Analytics Skill, can’t see any of them.

He then runs his hands through his hair and sports an unapologetic grin. It’s only then that I notice, for the first time, how careful and controlled everything is about him. His obvious body language and demeanor give off the impression that he’s a wild person; someone who follows their every whim, regardless of the consequences.

But it’s only now that I’m coming to realize that Octavian isn’t like that at all. In fact, he may be one of the most controlled people I’ve ever met. His entire personality is just a facade that he maintains like an actor with life as his stage. Even with how terrifying the implication is, I’m impressed with what he’s managed to accomplish.

He meets my eyes and flashes the his toothy smile towards me, unaware that I’ve finally managed to break through the outer facade. “I won’t lie, I was hoping you wouldn’t learn about the Vertasium. I was going to make a bit of money off of the hedges in the market but, more importantly, I don’t think you are ready for the attention that you’ll get it you put it out there.”

I cock my head to the side. “What do you mean?”

He gets up out of the chair and his tone becomes serious, “Vertasium is one of the most sought after resources in the universe. It’s not the rarest metal but it is incredibly versatile. Honestly it serves as the foundation for a huge number of militaries. Give or take 30% of them are completely reliant on it. You guys are safe from the upper waves for a few years but once the other 11th Wave planets know that you have it … you’ll become one of the prime targets for conquest.”

Is he letting a bit of his true personality past the wall or is this just another manipulation? The doubt erodes my trust in everything he says. However, the picture he paints is an incredibly realistic one.

In the dozens of history war books that I read in the old world, the great unifying factor among all of them was the presence of an important resource. Other motivations always sprung up but the desire for some resource, whether it be land, bodies, or mineral, was always present.

The fact that this new world is apparently the same is both a sense of relief and worry. Relief in the sense that I have a faint understanding of what I’m dealing with but worry in the sense that I know what I’m dealing with; the relentless desire for what the other person has. If other races are as greedy as humanity than I fear the Vertasium has the potential to cripple us before we begin.

“So what’s stopping us from stockpiling it and holding it on our own terms? Our own use?” I ask, genuinely considering the idea as a way to potentially hold back an impending doom.

He nods and his red eyes flash with intelligence for a split second. There’s a fierce intellect hidden behind that foppish persona. “In reality, nothing. Once you realize how much money you could make off it, everything. I’m not kidding Cael, that suit of armor that your friend has could outfit a small army with decent weaponry. And if what I’ve seen projected is true, you could be sitting on a massive amount.”

I consider his words. Despite my suspicions, I find myself believing him. There’s only one part that is bothering me.

“What do you gain out of this?”

“Excuse me?” he replies.

“What do you gain from telling us this? It’s obvious that you want me in your Market so there has to be some sort of benefit to adding ourselves to it. What do you get out of us selling Vertasium?”

A tightening of the upper cheek muscles, a predatory flash of his few sharp teeth, a fractional nod of his head in an almost sportsmanlike acknowledgement of my pointed question. These are the small signs that I see as soon as the words leave my mouth. They tell me one thing; Octavian caught on.

I imagine for the sake of everyone else in the room, he reaches up and scratches his chin in mock deep thought. This continues for a few seconds and then his hand shoots up as if inspiration has just struck him in that very moment. “Aha! I figured it out. It’s good me because we get the tax revenue. The higher the value of the transaction the more we get from our tax. And Elias calm yourself down, it’s only a 2% tax on the buyer side, so you wouldn’t be impacted anyway. It’s the lowest out of any of the Markets, by a pretty significant margin.”

I’ve almost made up my mind when a voice cuts through and ask, “C-c-can we h-h-hide beh-behind a proxy o-or a in-intermediary to s-s-sell? Or s-sell an-anonymously?”

Octavian’s shrugs his shoulders apologetically at Julian and responds, “Sorry, not possible. Ours is an open market, everyone visible with everything. Nothing is illegal to sell and everything's out in the open.”

That last part is unfortunate but it makes pragmatic sense. If all transactions are part of some sort of public log than there can’t be secret accumulations of goods. Everyone else would just be able to see the transactions and could eventually figure out the implications. Whether intended or not, the rule probably helps stop most wars while they are still in their infancy. Why attack your enemy when he or she can know that it is coming weeks or months in advance?

“All right Octavian, I’ve made my decision.”

I pull open the Primus Screen and select The Market of Sol Invictus.

You have selected The Market of Sol Invictus as your Market! Access to the Market Screen has now been granted to all designated Merchants within your designated area of control. Goods can be transported through the Gate with no additional transport charge.

Scanning Scanning …

Please establish your Gate. Merchants will be unable to access the Market Screen until this has been accomplished. You have [5] Earth Days left until a random location will be chosen.