Sentience 1: Storm Clouds Gathering (33 page)

The grand moment had passed. Aneke had to admit the most expensive cognac in the universe had indeed been exquisite. Not that he’d ever purchase a bottle himself. J.P. Aneke was much too practical a man to indulge himself to that extent. He’d content himself with the $75,000-a-bottle cognacs, or maybe even splurge on a $300,000 bottle when a significant enough victory seemed to warrant it, but he would certainly avail himself of the baron’s generosity while he had this one and only chance to quaff the very
best-of-the-best
.

To not fully enjoy the baron’s incredible hospitality to its fullest would constitute a mortal insult, or so Aneke justified the pure delicious decadence of the event to himself. Aneke would remember this little ceremony to his dying day. Regardless of what “business” the he might have in mind, Aneke definitely owed the baron for the memory of a truly
once-in-a-lifetime
experience. Aneke smiled. That, and in the eternal game of one-upmanship he regularly played with his Consortium contemporaries, this experience would allow him to go nuclear on their ass!

The baron himself refilled their snifters, saying, “Feel free to enjoy the cognac, Herr Aneke, I have more.”

Aneke’s eyes widened slightly.
I have more, he says!
“Your hospitality is quite, um… startling, my lord Baron. I do hope you don’t mind if I use your title, but I would be utterly mortified if I attempted pronouncing your name and made a complete hash of it.”

The baron smiled and answered, “The use of my title will be fine, Herr Aneke. In my country, none but my intimate family addresses me by name, anyway. I am quite used to it. To everyone else, I and my title are one.”

Aneke suddenly felt ill at ease.
“I and my title are one.”
This simple statement triggered a revelation within him. J.P. Aneke was a giant of finance, a manipulator of government, a man who got whatever he wanted, undisputed master of his domain, and yet something... something
foreign
to Aneke’s experience confronted him. This man
knew
something — possessed some weapon, had
some
advantage that Aneke didn’t understand. It was disconcerting.

Aneke tried to shake away his sudden unease and regain control. This was ridiculous! The baron had done nothing more than offer him a cognac… but more than
just
a cognac. “
I have more.”
His cavalier attitude towards the most expensive cognac in existence, as though it were inconsequential — as if a $5 million bottle of
140-year-old Henri VI Dudognon
was no different than the lowliest bourbon swilled by the human refuse who slept in doorways. This man... this
baron,
lived and thrived on a plane of existence Aneke had never dreamed existed.

Aneke was a master of manipulation, but this baron “manipulated” no one... he needn’t stoop to such plebeian methods. This baron simply spoke, and it happened. The universe seemed to lurch sideways and Aneke staggered inside. He felt himself as the fly, deep within the spider’s lair, and for the first time in many, many years, J.P. Aneke felt fear.

“I suppose you’re wondering,” said the baron, “why it is that I have invited you here today.”

The baron’s innocent observation offered Aneke the lifeline he needed — a point of focus to reestablish control from these ridiculous feelings of impending doom.

“Er, yes... that thought had crossed my mind,” Aneke replied. “I assumed it must have something to so with Starquest Aerospace
,
as the company was mentioned in your communiqué.”

“Yes,” replied the baron. “It has come to my attention that some recent expansions by some of Starquest’s subsidiaries have not prospered quite as envisioned, before they were built. No doubt President Buchwald’s decision to mothball so much of the Alliance Fleet, effectively killing the envisioned Fleet expansion and renovation projects, has proven quite a disappointment to you and your stockholders.”

Aneke pursed his lips.
So, it’s the defense plants, foundries and space-docks we built down South that he’s interested in.

“Admittedly, the president’s little surprise was a disappointment to some, but that’s business and we’ve dealt with over-capacity issues in the past,” Aneke replied.

“Yes, but rarely have such over-capacity issues existed coincident to an economic boom environment, such as that occurring throughout the Alliance’s Northern worlds at the moment,” replied the baron. “I would think having so many resources tied up in unprofitable venues would inhibit potential exploitation of more profitable opportunities elsewhere.”

“Perhaps,” replied Aneke. “What might your interest be in these ‘unprofitable venues,’ as you called them?”

The baron smiled and leaned forward, “I have always been interested in starships, Herr Aneke. I have studied them all my life. I’ve done almost everything a man can do with starships at one time or another, except one — I have never built them. I always intended to, but the opportunity just never manifested itself.

“I have recently acquired contracts for building a number of starships, but unfortunately I don’t currently possess the manufacturing facilities that I need to build them. German shipyards are at capacity, which is primarily ‘why’ I was awarded the contracts, as no other German manufacturers could deliver within the desired timeframe. As I need manufacturing facilities I don’t have, and you have manufacturing facilities you don’t need, I thought perhaps I might buy yours.”

Here was a situation Aneke knew well and avoided thoroughly.
It appears that the baron is in a bind. He has signed contracts in hand and stands to lose a fortune when he can’t fulfill them.
His estimation of the baron’s business acumen plummeted.

“I’m sure that Starquest can fulfill your contracts in the role of sub-contractor, Baron.”

“I’m afraid you misunderstand me, Herr Aneke. My contracts are finalized and do not contain sufficient profit margin to allow for sub-contracting. I would like to purchase all of your facilities now sitting virtually idle at Joja. We both know that, after President Buchwald’s recent ‘cost-cutting’ moves, these facilities have become toxic assets and you’re losing considerable amounts of money on them every day that goes by. It only makes good business sense for you to unload these expensive money-drains if you possibly can.”

Just as it would have made good business sense for you to NOT sign contracts promising things that you do not have the means to deliver, my lord Baron,
thought Aneke.

“Not that I would abuse your hospitality, or ever consider doing such an unscrupulous thing,” said Aneke, “but just for the sake of argument, what would prevent me from merely ascertaining the identity of your customer and obtaining these contracts myself, after you default?”

The baron surprised Aneke, by breaking into a boyish grin. “I’m afraid I have a bit of an advantage in that regard, Herr Aneke. I seriously doubt that my great-uncle, His Royal Majesty, Kaiser Wilhelm VII, Emperor of the Greater Germanic Empire
,
would look kindly upon conducting business dealings with the ethically-challenged.”

Ah, so it’s a family deal then. Not used to dealing with families having more money than most corporations, and owning their own government.
“I see,” said Aneke. “Well, in that case I suppose that we could discuss the sale of Starquest assets then. What do you propose, my lord Baron?”

“My people have conducted a through investigation of these toxic assets of yours and I am prepared to offer you $6.7 billion for all Starquest Aerospace assets within the Jojan system.”

Aneke swallowed.
All in all, not a bad offer.
A bit high for an opening bid, but that’s to my benefit, not his.
“Oh, we could never let them all go for $6.7 billion. It cost us more than that just to build them.”

The smile disappeared from the baron’s face and his eyebrows pinched together as he said, “I
choose
to believe you are misinformed, Herr Aneke.” The baron then reached into an inner pocket in his tunic and extracted a paper, that he handed to Aneke.

“Here is a listing of the actual construction costs incurred by Starquest Aerospace and its subsidiaries for the purchase and construction of all of the facilities under discussion. I assure you, these figures are accurate down to the penny.”

Aneke looked at the figures.
How the hell did he get these?
It had been a while since he’d reviewed the numbers on these assets, but they appeared right.
“I choose to believe…”
The baron
knew
he’d lied, and then went on as if the attempted deception was of no matter. Aneke’s balls tightened, as that feeling of unease returned.

“As you can see, Herr Aneke,” the baron continued, “since completion, these facilities have produced a total of $693.4 million in gross income, while having expenditures totaling of $2,212.6 million over the same time period, totaling a loss of 1,159.2 million, or almost $200 million per month, including interest on the outstanding debt. Total expenditures for the purchase and construction of all of these facilities totaled to $6,097.3 million. Our offer of $6,700 million allows Starquest to instantly have this full amount available in new liquidity and immediately available for reinvestment into more profitable enterprises. Starquest would realize a profit of $602.7 million, over and above your total investment and the means to plug a $2.4 billion per year hole in your balance sheet.”

Instantly?
“Ah, what form does your offer take? Stocks, bonds…”

“Cash.”

“Cash? You have nearly $7 billion lying around in cash?”

“Oh, much more than that, Herr Aneke, I assure you.”

Much more than that, I assure you
. Aneke reeled. No one left that much money lying around liquid. Not unless he’d recently liquidated assets to have cash-in-hand to make this deal.
He’s awfully damned confident I’m going to take him up on his offer at face value.
Aneke balked internally.
That’s not the way the game is played, here in the Alliance, Herr Baron.

“I must, of course, present your offer to my Board of Directors, before any agreements can be finalized.”

The baron smiled again. “We both know that is not true, Herr Aneke. You have full authority to conduct any and all business transactions under $10 billion, without consulting your Board.”

How the hell did he know that?

“However,” continued the baron, as his smile grew colder and his eyes bored holes through the Consortium Chairman. “That makes twice you have attempted to mislead me. I wouldn’t advise you to try it a third time.”

The baron rose and walked to a side chest. He extracted a large sheaf of papers, which he laid on the table behind their chairs.

“I have taken the liberty of having my lawyers draw up the necessary contracts for transfer of ownership on the properties in question.”

“Surely you don’t expect me to sign contracts that haven’t been thoroughly examined by Starquest’s lawyers?”

“Oh, that’s
exactly
what I expect you to do, Herr Aneke,” said the baron menacingly. “For a man in your position, it's the only logical course of action.”

“A man in MY position, Baron? I’m not the one facing default on contracts with my own government,” Aneke snorted.

“Nor am I, Herr Aneke. Perhaps I should clarify, so that you better understand the weakness of your position.”

“I don’t understand what you mean by ‘the weakness of my position,’” said Aneke, now totally confused by the sudden change in the baron’s demeanor.

“One moment.” The baron walked to the fireplace and opened a concealed panel, revealing a number of controls of some kind — one of which he activated. From hidden speakers came slightly muffled, but clearly identifiable voices that Aneke recognized instantly.

J.P Aneke: “Okay, what do we
really
want to do about this mess? Anyone have any bright ideas?”

Morgan Rainey: “If you don’t mind me saying ‘
I told you so’...
”

The blood drained from Aneke’s face as he listened to the recording of himself and the rest of the Consortium Executive Board clearly incriminating themselves. Aneke remembered that conversation thoroughly.
My God, how did he get this? What else has he got on us?

As the recording finished, the baron again walked to the chest from which he had earlier extracted the contracts and brought out another sheaf of papers. The baron spoke as he walked back towards Aneke.

“Bribery of government officials, subverting election laws, extortion, conspiracy… such a long list! My, my, Herr Aneke, we certainly have been a very
naughty
boy, haven’t we?” The baron handed Aneke the papers.

“Do you recognize these, Herr Aneke?”

Aneke gulped for air, his mouth working silently, like a beached fish.

“These make up a fairly comprehensive list documenting Consortium deposits into numbered accounts in foreign banks, matched to the names and positions of Alliance governmental officials making withdrawals from those accounts. We have video, if you’d care to see it.” The baron gave him a cold smile, the look of a predator, just before the kill.

Aneke felt faint.
We have video, if you’d care to see it.
He shuddered with a sudden vision of a gigantic pin suddenly piercing his middle and his being placed most meticulously onto a display board beside all the other specimens in the collection. Again, Aneke felt fear — not just some imagined, nameless fear, as before. This time the fear was real… raw, primal terror that gripped his heart in ice.

“How…?” Aneke gasped.

“Because I’m a better man than you are, Herr Aneke. I don’t
need
to cheat, to win.”

Aneke felt himself spinning towards a black abyss.

“Herr Aneke, would you care for more cognac? You don’t appear at all well…”

Alliance Press (AP): Nork – Financial News Release (10/17/60)

The German conglomerate TBG (
Tydlich Bundesgenosse Gespenster)
announced today it has purchased all of the Starquest Aerospace subsidiaries in the Joja system. No details of the agreement were released, but our sources speculate that Starquest received over $6.5 billion in the exchange.