For example, the man he was supposed to meet actually wasn't there at Fort Spoas.

"Greetings, good sir. I need to see your leader, Sir Remian Vin." He told the highest ranking officer at the airport.

Markus scratched his head and said, "Sorry, but he's out right now. Maybe I could get George to pa.s.s him a message?"

"Ah, yes. Tell him it's of utmost importance and urgency that we meet. Also, tell him his money is ready."

"Money?" Jane suddenly woke up from her lecture-induced stupor and stared. "What do you mean, money?"

"That is confidential." The Deutero man said.

Meanwhile, Markus brightened to see Jane there. "Hey, you're one of George's friends, aren't you? Can't you send him the message? I have a bunch of new recruits to handle, here."

"Sure! So what money are we talking about?" Jane asked, intently.

"It is from the auction sale. He should understand the rest."

Jane froze. The words seemed to jam her brains completely.

Money. Auction. Sale.

Those three words together, plus the fact that they were enough to send a representative all the way out here told her a big, BIG secret.

The was a LOT of money involved.

How much? Remian had been dealing in thousands and tens of thousands before but they never sent anyone over especially for that. Just how much money had he gotten his hands on this time?!

"Maybe I shouldn't have left…" Jane gulped.

"Can you handle it?" the representative asked, then.

"Yes! Yes, of course!" Jane gasped. "Sorry, who do I say it's from again?"

"Mr. Moda from the Deutero Company. Also, tell him I have a lucrative proposal for him."

Jane practically ran to the Guild Hall, leaving behind a very bewildered Jim.

***

"He wants to meet me?" Remian repeated over the communications crystal, scratching his head. "We're almost to Three Pines Peak by now! It's two days away from town even on this airs.h.i.+p, maybe a week if you use a Tug! We can't just turn back now! Can he talk over the crystal?"

"I'll see what I can do." George promised.

***

"We have him. I'll put him on."

"Sir Remian? h.e.l.lo, my name is Mr. Moda, I'm a representative from the Deutero Company. I'm here to talk about investment banking."

"What? Investment banking? What does that have to do with me?"

"Frankly speaking, sir, since the conclusion of our most recent auction, your income and current account are both large enough to warrant a VIP treatment. This means that if you open an account with our investment bank, you can get immediate preferred status. We can a.s.sure you, your money will grow safely and surely in our hands! Our track record indicates an average of 15% returns per year over the past ten years… that means, whatever you entrust to us, we will double that amount in seven years! Best of all, there is no limit! Whether you wish to entrust us with ten million or thirty-two million, we can handle it all!"

Remian snorted. "And where, good sir, would I get thirty-two million lir?"

"Why, you already have it, sir. That's the balance of the revenue from the sale of the airs.h.i.+p, after deducting commission and the ten million lir advance."

There was a crash on the other end of the line.

George's voice could be heard from a distance. "Jane? Jane, are you all right? h.e.l.looo…?"

Footsteps sounded. "Phoebe! Phoebe, help! Somebody call Phoebe!!"

The discussion went on for a while during which both George and Mindy, who were present, learned;

1. The value of money is always dropping because of inflation, which means that things will keep costing more and more money, and therefore the purchasing power of whatever money you keep lying around is going to decrease over time.

2. It's a really bad idea to just leave money lying around as 'savings', because money that isn't growing at least to match the inflation rate is in fact shrinking.

3. Deutero is willing to grow Remian's money for him without him ever having to work, by using it to invest, trade, and make profits, which was their expertise. While returns could not be entirely guaranteed, they had a very impressive thirty year track record for reliable and healthy returns. Or so Moda claimed.

"I appreciate the offer, Mr. Moda, but I already have many projects here that need my investment." Remian told him at last. "I believe my a.s.sets here, properly developed, would provide me with much higher returns in the long run."

"I admire your courage, Sir." Mody replied. "You truly are brave to put everything you have into such risky endeavors. From where I stand, a great deal of your invested projects thus far have literally ended in ruins."

"It's true. I can see the wreckage from here too." George put in.

"Do you think it's a good idea to invest with them, George?" Remian asked.

"Well, not all of it, since we really do need money to rebuild and develop, but maybe some of it? Just in case? I mean, you're going to find that wild man and there's no telling what he'll do afterward. Considering what happened last time, there might be nothing left by next week."

"An excellent observation!" Mr. Moda exclaimed. "Indeed, our investments can be considered low-risk in comparison."

There was a short silence. "I can put in ten million. But I have urgent matter to see to and won't be back for a while yet."

"That's not a problem. Actually, I need you to come to a Deutero branch office at the very least. The nearest one is being constructed at Fal'Herim as we speak, but it only goes into operation next week. I just came here to inform you of your opportunities and options."

"I appreciate it, but right now what I really need are men and materials to develop my a.s.sets here."

"We can help you with that. With your VIP status, given a large enough order, we can even dedicate entire airs.h.i.+ps to deliver your goods. In fact, I myself can help you with that. Just tell me what you need."

"George? Can you handle that?" Remian asked.

"Me?"

"You're there, on site. You know what we need better than I do, right now."

"Uh… right. Okay."

"We need to develop the mines and fortify them against Tier 4's. Also, we need a lot more airs.h.i.+ps. Check with Arnold and find out what we need for five more Sky Barges and two more Tugs."

"What about Guns.h.i.+ps?"

"Hold off on those. Mindy's working on a new design for armed corvettes, some sort of small patrol boat. The kind that can get to where they need to go without a Tug."

"Okay. I'll contact you when I have the numbers ready."

"Actually, don't. We might be very, very busy soon. Just handle it yourself. Your budget is ten million lir. See what you can do with that."

There was a pause.

Mr. Moda's voice sounded then. "George? George, are you all right? h.e.l.loooo…?"