Shepherd's Crook: Omegaverse: Volume 2 Read Free

marketplace interface for trade goods, with prices displayed for either purchase or sale by the Werewolves.
    He began by selling off the entire cargo load of the Shepherd Moon, the ship he’d piloted to this remote and dangerous corner of the galaxy. Then, taking the listings for the two closest space stations, what Taipan had called the ‘American’ and ‘Indian’ stations, he found resources that sold here in Eta Bootis for much less than either of those stations; noting which player station would pay more as he bought each resource.
    Almost always, the American station paid a percent or two more while the Indian station sold for a percent or two less. Taipan had, incorrectly Phani thought, referred to this as a ‘triangle trade’; buying in India to sell in Eta Bootis, then buying in Eta Bootis to sell in America. A triangle, he mused, needed a third leg - a route from the American to the Indian station - there just wasn’t enough profit in the run, however, to justify it.
    Whatever he called it, Taipan’s wealth was growing quickly. Phani almost regretted that the entire hold of the Shepherd Moon was dedicated to Taipan’s trades while on these runs, and that, due to treaty, that ship was the only one allowed in this system.
    Phani couldn’t even buy his own ship to take advantage; but he knew he was still very fortunate in this business agreement. He had free use of the ship after he had made his daily run ferrying trade goods collected from Taipan’s space station; resources that were purchased and shipped by cargo container from the Indian station. Phani would return this purchase from Eta Bootis to the station, and Taipan would then ship it off to the American station for sale.
    Phani then noticed that the sales list was categorized; the default category listed mineral resources, but a secondary page showed objects for sale. Blueprints. He clicked through and scanned down the list.
    “This must be loot that the werewolves got from their raids into human territory,” he muttered to himself, in awe at the length and variety of the listing. Weapons. Armor. Sensors. Ship parts. He clicked through to another tab; certificates. There were dozens of listings for incremental upgrades in player skills. Piloting. Sniping. Mining. Heavy Armor.
    The variety looked impressive, but most looked, Phani thought, to be fairly common; though if he could get them for less than retail cost, he could still make money selling them in volume. What really attracted his attention, though, and what really got him excited, were some high level advancements. They were fairly rare and sure to be in high demand.
    He needed to learn much more, though, about the market for such goods before investing. He also needed to know how Taipan wanted to handle this aspect of the market. No mention had been made in their agreement; informal as it was, he didn’t feel he should take advantage of it before bringing it to his partner’s attention.
    He began to think through a proposal. Phani would take the risk of purchasing these items; as they took no cargo weight or space, their addition to his daily runs wouldn’t impact Taipan’s trades in any way. Taipan would be provided a right of first refusal on these items, which Phani would sell to Taipan at cost. Any other items, Phani would sell on the open market. He would leave it up to the American to decide what percentage of any profits he felt was his due.
    Phani sat back and took a sip of his warming beer, the condensation on the bottle puddling above his fingers. It felt unbelievably good to have a few months living expenses in the bank and to know that would be the case for at least the next year, roughly. He opened a box of new, fresh, cigarettes, put one between his lips. He reached for the bright yellow plastic lighter, sitting shining next to his keyboard, and lit the cigarette. Pulling the smoke deeply into his lungs, he ran his other hand over his forehead. The cold condensed water,