Lee Long recalled a conversation with Hannah Muller. They were discussing life in the colony. And she talked about an interesting forum on the colony's network. The boy managed to remember part of the title. Something about Independence.
He sat down at his desk and turned on his computer. He typed in the word Independence in his search and got the results. Exploring the forum surprised him pleasantly.
Turns out there had been an interest club in the colony for a long time. The question of Independence had always bothered people. In this forum, people expressed ideas and fantasies and exchanged facts.
Lee discovered common details of the different concepts of independence.
At the very beginning, it requires spending money on space exploration. The colony is already on the outskirts of the developed sectors. To establish an independent colony it is necessary to find a planet with conditions suitable for human life. Especially important is the fact that a valuable resource is available. M-crystals and Power Stones are a necessary factor for a start that has prospects. A medium transport expedition could take one year to travel into uncharted space and return. Humans agreed that a new colony must be located far away. The attention of the advanced races is a danger to independence. No one would allow humans to develop freely.
The second phase involved breaking the laws of the Alliance. The Alliance had strong economic type ties. All technology had owners. Colony Europe 9 could not afford to buy licenses to produce basic consumer products. The colony bought products and goods from the Ferin race!
The secret independent colony was able to survive with the deployment of a universal goods factory. This complex cost 200 million credits. It was fully automated. It required programs that were based on licenses to produce goods. Each license cost at least a hundred million credits. Each license required a constant fee for use. This was the basis of the Alliance's tax system.
Resource and food extraction came in third place. It was an issue any colony could handle. The most primitive mining spaceship cost a hundred thousand credits. Such a space miner could be used to dig through asteroid clusters and lifeless planets. Developing an economy for food production wasn't difficult either. Plant crops ranged in price from very expensive to simple cheap seeds. Some products required special licenses, but most products were part of the culture of every civilization. No one could require a license to make bread.
The last and important point was the moment of militarization. The defense of the colony required technology. The matter was ridiculously simple. Piracy was a constant phenomenon in the existence of the Galaxy. Space travel has always been a dangerous business. The armament of a spaceship is a matter of personal preference. But weapons were freely available in the galaxy. The manufacture of weapons required licenses. But defending a single colony was not a huge expense. Moreover, the purchase and sale of weapons have always been an important part of the illegal market.
One space defense station and a powerful ground energy shield cost a hundred million credits. Any colony could fend off an attack by pirates and a private military company.
How much population is required to start an independent colony? 100,000 people could start. This was the most controversial issue in the discussion of the existence of an independent colony.
Spreading important information to such a large group would result in a breach of secrecy. Ferin civilized galactic guardians of humanity. They will infiltrate spies into the ranks of the colonists. Ferin will learn the coordinates of a planet rich in resources. Then a Ferin spaceship will arrive with a portal to a distant planet. Humans will receive thanks and the right to work in the new pits and mines.
Lee Long learned many useful ideas and facts. He now had an approximate idea of the enormous money involved. The boy did not understand where and how he could find future independent colonists for himself. Even his closest people, Nick and Maria, would not be able to betray the interests of Europe 9. At the same time, Lee was sure that there were already people in the colony who did not need any independence! The colony already had a dynasty of professional managers who had longstanding and strong ties to the Ferin. He recalled with quiet horror and delight the most extreme opinion on the forum. A small group of a hundred people can establish a colony. And the other thousands of people should be forced by force! People must be captured and taken into distant spaces. That's the real piracy! But a great future can begin with a dirty and filthy present.
Money and prestige are the foundations for an important new business. The little duelist had no money and no authority. He had only the semblance of a superpower to carry out his plans. And he had no experience.
Lee Long failed in one experiment. He decided to incarnate in a ferin. He chose one kitten from the tribe for a sample. He had fought with it several times and had an approximate idea of what he could turn into. He had a holographic picture! In this picture was a company of kittens led by Black Star. Lee stared intently and closely at the kitten's face and activated the Race Dance skill. He was in terrible pain. When he came to, he was horrified to find that he had received a disgusting result. He looked unnatural. He had no living face! He had a synthetic kitten mask on his head. He moved with difficulty. His body was stiff and incapable of normal activity. Lee regained his native form. He realized that he needed to know his role model well! He needs to spend some time around the subject. Perhaps his mind is spending time gathering important information and important details about the future donor's behavior. Lee Long was not upset. A crude disguise for a one-time action was an acceptable move.
He understood that Operation Suggestion had to be performed soon. And the boy did not delay his new visit to the capital. He habitually did his morning healing session at the hospital and set off on his journey.
In the capital, the boy did an important business at one of the banks. He paid for the creation of a new account. He created a regular account from which credits could be withdrawn by remote access. Lee Long looked into the matter and learned an important point. He would not be able to get a million credits quickly! Any normal smart person would keep large deposits in a special account. To gain access to more money one must pass a bank check. Then the boy made his usual flight to the lower town. He did not disguise his face, but wore a ferin hunter suit and covered his head with a hood. His eyes picked out customers and he applied the skill of Appraisal. He was looking for an elderly smuggler or bandit. An elderly ferin with a dangerous profession sure managed to accumulate a lot of money.
One individual caught the boy's attention. A cat with gray hair behaved confidently and calmly. Its status indicated that it was an old pirate and smuggler. Lee proceeded with Operation Suggestion. Is an old pirate so confident that he walks freely without guards? He would pay for it. The boy needed less than a minute alone with this dangerous and wealthy type. He got his opportunity for a mental attack.
The old pirate didn't expect any trouble. He was enjoying his time and his life was beautiful. He paid no attention to the short hunter who stopped next to him. Anxiety and intuition made the pirate pay attention to the stranger's face. But the hunter's face was covered by the usual mask. Suddenly the stranger held out a piece of paper to him and ordered in a low, clear voice,
"Transfer all free access credits to this account."
The stranger did not stay long and left at once to go about his business. The pirate didn't answer anything. He picked up his communicator paw and started making transfers from various accounts. He had several bank accounts. No unpleasant thoughts entered his mind. He was ripping himself off and doing it with a calm expression on his face. No one paid any attention to the respectable cat who conducts his important business with his communicator.
At this time, Lee Long was quickly walking away. He wished he had bought a flyer. He could afford the purchase. The small, single-seat simple flyer weighed about 100 kilograms. Such a model could be hidden in the inventory! And it would allow him to get away from the scene of the crime without too many witnesses. The boy cursed his greed. He took off his mask and suit. The flight to the midtown area took a couple of minutes. Lee Long walked over to the bank account terminal.
The ugly robber entered the password and smiled, "I like this town. Thank you, naughty good cat. Your credits will serve a great cause!"
824,365 credits!
What kind of contest? Almost a million credits in three minutes of excitement. That's a very scary crime. You don't live long with skills like that.
Lee Long started withdrawing money from the account. The terminal allowed credit chips worth 100 credits. These were the biggest chips. Another method of payment was a credit card with a limited number of credits. The card could hold 1,000 credits. The boy withdrew 4,000 credits from his account and put the first batch of chips in his inventory. Then he headed to the flyer store. He liked the simple model and paid for the purchase.
At this time there was a scandal in the lower town. Many people knew the esteemed Merro Sharp. But no one knew that this respectable ferin could behave so unseemly and outrageous. The cat stood in the street and didn't touch anyone. Suddenly he let out an indignant roar and cursed loudly. He began working quickly with his communicator. Soon a flyer flew up to him. The three cats jumped out and got their orders. The pirate sent a message to his partner. His old friend and partner were well versed in various financial machinations. He had been laundering old Merro Sharp's money for a long time. Pirate couldn't explain what made him empty his stash of money. It was magic! It was magic on the brain! The pirate could not recognize the stranger who had robbed him. The pirate sent his partner the account number and demanded to sort out the owner.
An hour later, the old pirate began to get drunk on toxic milk. The account for the remote-access password bearer had already been emptied! The scum had stolen the money, the scum had managed to get away with his credits! People from the pirate's crew conducted an inquest. The stranger acted calmly and was able to escape. In that cursed lower town, one in three walked around in regular hunter's suits. And one in five was a scoundrel and a crook. Who hid his face under the hood.
At this time the little scoundrel and pirate troublemaker was sitting in his hotel room deciding an important question,
"Why did I stay in the capital? To repeat the robbery? That is an impertinence. I have to go back to the colony in the morning. I must look for an opportunity to expand my sphere of activity!"