Chapter 18: Market Manipulator
After receiving confirmation from both the South African government and the rebel leader Draven Voss, Quinn set to work, preparing both orders. This time, the situation demanded precision and secrecy. Two separate deals were in motion, both for opposing sides of a bloody civil conflict. It required strategic finesse, but Quinn was no stranger to handling chaos.
As soon as the orders were finalized, Quinn activated two different sets of his robots. These were no ordinary delivery systems; they were state-of-the-art, high-tech machines capable of traveling undetected across borders. One set of robots was tasked with delivering the government's order, while the other handled the rebel army's weapons. Despite their conflicting allegiances, both deliveries occurred simultaneously.
Once the weapons were successfully delivered, and the transactions completed, Quinn's capital began to skyrocket. Within just another week, his wealth had grown to a staggering $10 million. He had anticipated the profit, but the ease with which the money flowed in left him craving more. His appetite for wealth was insatiable. The deals in South Africa were only the beginning.
Sitting in his dimly lit apartment, Quinn brainstormed his next move. He knew that if he wanted to accumulate more capital quickly, the traditional means of making money wouldn't suffice. Selling weapons and running underground operations took time. What he needed was a faster way to generate colossal sums of cash.
That's when an idea struck him—futures trading.
The futures market, though inherently volatile, could be manipulated for massive profits. It was, after all, a market where fortunes could be made or lost in minutes. Quinn had Nexus by his side, a nearly omnipotent AI capable of manipulating global systems with ease. With Nexus's help, he could exploit the futures market and amass millions in a fraction of the time it took to run his weapons business.
Quinn leaned back in his chair, grinning. "Nexus," he called out, his voice brimming with excitement. "I have an idea."
Nexus's familiar monotone voice responded, "I'm listening, host."
"We're going to manipulate the futures market," Quinn declared. "I need capital, and I need it fast. The futures market moves faster than any other investment platform, and with your ability to manipulate the background, we can make this happen."
Nexus paused for a moment before replying. "Your reasoning is sound. The futures market is indeed highly lucrative if manipulated correctly. I can control market fluctuations from the background without detection. However, you'll need to decide which market to target first."
Quinn had already anticipated this. He had been watching the oil market for weeks now. It was volatile, and its prices were dictated by political tensions, production levels, and even natural disasters. With the current unrest in Africa, he knew it was a prime candidate for manipulation.
"We'll start with oil," Quinn said confidently. "It's unstable right now, and a single shift in price could cause ripples across the entire market. We'll start by going long."
Nexus acknowledged the decision, and within minutes, the AI began manipulating the oil market. It was an intricate process, but for Nexus, it was as simple as pushing a few digital levers. While the market remained unaware, Nexus began gradually influencing the price of oil, causing it to rise at a steady rate.
Quinn watched the screens in front of him as the oil prices began to climb. His investment in oil was already starting to yield returns, but this was just the beginning. He knew that the true profit lay in what came next.
After roughly twenty minutes, Quinn made his next move. "Now, we'll switch positions," he instructed Nexus. "Buy short."
Nexus executed the order instantly. With the oil price already at an inflated level, Quinn's strategy was to short-sell before the inevitable price collapse. It was a classic move in futures trading—buy low, sell high—but in this case, Nexus was manipulating the entire market in Quinn's favor. What would have taken weeks or months for an ordinary trader to achieve was unfolding in a matter of minutes.
As soon as the short order was placed, the oil market reacted. Prices, which had climbed so dramatically, began to plummet. Traders across the globe who had been betting on the long side of the market watched in horror as their fortunes evaporated. Within half an hour, the price of oil had fallen back to its original level—and then kept dropping.
It was chaos.
Quinn leaned forward, his eyes locked on the screen. His orders, totaling over $30 million, had been absorbed by the market in less than five minutes. The collapse was swift and brutal, catching everyone off guard. Investors who had been dreaming of riches moments ago were now facing complete financial ruin. Quinn's heart raced as the numbers on his screen continued to climb.
Nexus manipulated the market with surgical precision, ensuring that Quinn's orders were executed flawlessly. The oil price continued to tumble, and before anyone could react, billions of dollars had been wiped from the market. It was a massacre.
Across the world, oil companies scrambled to investigate what had just happened. News reports flooded the internet, documenting the market crash and the devastation it caused. But despite their best efforts, no one could pinpoint the source of the manipulation. As far as the rest of the world was concerned, it was a natural fluctuation—an unfortunate byproduct of the volatile oil market.
For Nexus, manipulating the stock and futures markets was child's play. Its advanced algorithms were light years ahead of any human or automated trading system. While investigators searched for answers, Quinn sat in his apartment, unbothered by the chaos he had just caused.
With a satisfied smirk, he glanced at the final tally of his profits. Over $150 million in less than an hour. It was a staggering sum, one that would be nearly impossible to achieve by conventional means.
Quinn leaned back in his chair, the rush of excitement still coursing through his veins. He had never felt more alive. The power to bend the market to his will, to ruin countless lives and make a fortune in the process—it was intoxicating.
He looked at the screens, seeing the news coverage of the collapse. Bankruptcies were being filed left and right. People who had put their life savings into oil futures were ruined. For a moment, Quinn thought about the devastation he had caused, but the thought quickly passed.
This was the world he lived in. A world where only the fittest survived. No one had shown him pity when he was struggling, so why should he show mercy now? He was a capitalist through and through, and in this ruthless world, only one thing mattered—wealth.
As he closed his laptop, Quinn spoke to himself, his voice filled with resolve. "This is just the beginning."
His goal of amassing $2 billion no longer seemed like a distant dream. With Nexus's help and the futures market under his control, he would achieve his goal in no time. And once he did, the real games would begin.