[The Pantheon - The War Room]
"Time remaining: 23 hours," Dawn announced. The countdown clock on the wall was the only light in the room.
Alex paced back and forth. The Auditor was hovering in orbit, waiting to strip the atmosphere. "Dawn, list our assets. What can we sell to the Galactic Market?"
"Analyzing..." Dawn's hologram flickered. "Item: 100 Tons of Gold. Value: 0.05 GC. (Reason: Asteroid mining makes gold common)." "Item: 500 Nuclear Warheads. Value: 0.00 GC. (Reason: Obsolete technology. Considered 'firecrackers')." "Item: The Mona Lisa. Value: 1.00 GC. (Reason: Primitive pigment on wood)."
Alex slammed his fist on the table. "We are sitting on the richest planet in the solar system, and we are broke?"
"Master," Luna stepped forward. She handed him a cup of espresso. "You need to calm down."
Alex took the cup. The smell of roasted beans filled the room. He stared at the black liquid. "Dawn," Alex whispered. "Scan this."
[Item: High-Grade Arabica Coffee (Caffeine Solution).] [Galactic Classification: Class-C Organic Stimulant.] [Rarity: Rare (Only grows on 3 planets in the Sector).] [Estimated Value: 50 GC per gram.]
Alex froze. "Fifty... Credits... per gram?" He looked at the 100 tons of gold that was worth pennies. Then he looked at the coffee bean, which was worth a starship.
"They don't need our tech," Alex realized, a manic grin spreading across his face. "They need our drugs."
[The Marketplace]
"Open the Galactic Trade Terminal," Alex ordered. "Connect to the nearest Trade Hub."
A new holographic window opened. It was chaotic. Alien text scrolled rapidly. [WANTED: Hyper-Drive Coils.] [SELLING: Slave Labor (Goblins).] [WANTED: Organic Stimulants.]
Alex grabbed a bag of "Blue Mountain" coffee beans from his private stash. "Dawn, list it. Auction format. Starting bid: 100 GC."
[Listing Item: Pure Earth Caffeine (1kg).] [Status: Live.]
[The Bidding War]
PING. [Bidder: The Insectoid Hive (Sector 4).] [Bid: 200 GC.]
PING. [Bidder: Warlord Krall.] [Bid: 500 GC.]
PING. PING. PING.
The numbers shot up. "It's working," Luna gasped, watching the screen. "They are fighting over it."
"Comment from Warlord Krall: 'Is this the pure stuff? My troops need to stay awake for the siege of Kepler-9. I will pay double for instant delivery.'"
Alex laughed. It was the laugh of a man who had just found a cheat code. "Sold! To the Warlord for 1,000 GC!"
[Transaction Complete.] [Balance: 1,000 GC.]
[The Scale]
"We need 10,000 GC to pay the rent," Alex calculated rapidly. "That's just 10 kilograms of coffee."
"Dawn!" Alex turned to the AI. "Buy every coffee plantation in Colombia. Buy every tea field in India. Buy the chocolate factories in Switzerland."
"Sir?"
"We aren't a technology planet anymore," Alex walked to the window, looking up at the terrifying black monolith in the sky.
"We are a Narco-State."
Alex tapped the glass. "The Auditor wants to liquidate us? Fine. I'll get the entire galaxy addicted to Earth. Let's see them try to destroy their supplier."
[System Alert] [New Title Unlocked: The Caffeine Kingpin.] [Galactic Reputation: Neutral -> Interesting.]