Chapter 12

During our ride to the Archer Conglomerate Headquarters, I noticed that Sandy turned her comm unit off. It had chimed three times, so turning it off seemed to be a wise move. I didn’t comment on it as it was evident she didn’t want to speak with her mother. Our driver dropped us off at the front entry and he went to park the limousine in the visitor parking area. The line at the front desk was short, and our driver had rejoined us by the time it was our turn to obtain help from the receptionist.

“Good morning, Miss. How can I assist you?”

“Good morning. I am Sandy Archer and I have an appointment with Chairman Smart at ten o’clock.”

“If you and your party will please take a seat, Miss Archer, I will let Chairman Smart’s secretary, Janice, know that you are here.”

We found a small group of seats and sat down. Well, we sat down and my bodyguards spread out to watch the area surrounding us. The name of Archer had its effect on the receptionist, but my bodyguards’ behavior obviously disturbed the receptionist, for she kept glancing over at our group with a concerned look on her face. I didn’t think she was accustomed to being near a large group of bodyguards. I was about to have Harold explain the situation to the receptionist when Janice appeared to escort us to Harry’s office. I noticed the receptionist had motioned to Janice, as she was passing by, and she quickly said something to Janice. Janice replied and a very wide-eyed young lady turned to stare in our direction.

“I’m curious, Janice, what did the receptionist tell you and what did you say to her?”

“Oh, she is a new employee. She was concerned that there was something wrong about your group and wanted to know if she should call our security department. I told her it wasn’t necessary for you and Sandy owned the majority of our stock and the men she was concerned about are your bodyguards.”

I would have to stop on the way out and thank her for her being an observant employee and for her concern about the welfare of those around her. On second thought, I decided to mention it to Janice. I wanted to tell the receptionist to contact security in a similar situation. Janice would probably be a better person to let the young lady know that the security department was there to handle situations such as a person or group of people who seemed wrong to her. Let the professionals handle the situation. Coming from me that may seem to her like a reprimand instead of friendly advice.

We were early, but Harry wasn’t busy and he came out to greet Sandy. I think all of us being there was a bit of a surprise to him. I told Harry that I thought that Sandy and he might touch on topics that would require my input, so I had suggested that I come with her.

Harry said, “That’s a good idea, Doug. I think Sandy and I will talk privately for a while, and if we reach a point where we need your input or point of view, we will let you know.”

My initial thought was that Harry was shutting me out. My second thought was this was between Harry and Sandy, so I should not be involved. Finally, I accepted that I did not need to babysit Sandy. She was a very capable adult. The way she handled her mother had shown me that she didn’t need me to take care of her. If she needed help, she would ask. So I sat back in my chair in the reception area of Harry’s office and daydreamed about the things I needed to do in the coming week. Actually, it was more planning than daydreaming, but it was a very casual, relaxed form of planning. After about a half hour, Harry and Sandy came out of the office with smiles on their faces.

Harry looked at me and said, “Thank you for recommending Sandy to me, Doug. I wouldn’t have thought of her, but I think she will be perfect for the position. My only concern is when can we begin trading on Earth?”

“I am working on that, Harry. You know that I have three years of trade rights on Earth. I need to discuss that with Maribel to get a ruling on whether Sandy can sell Archer products using my trade rights. Earth is not ready for me to open the planet to full trade with the Multiverse. However, a limited amount of trade would be beneficial. If Maribel concurs with my interpretation of trade rights, Sandy and I can come to an agreement on several items that can be sold on Earth, and she can set up business as a trader.”

I have been assuming that I had to be her partner or charge her a fee for using my trade rights to make the arrangement legal, but I may have been wrong. Harry took us down to the executive dining room where we all could relax and have lunch. Well, my bodyguards only got to relax while they ate, and they had to eat in shifts, so that didn’t give them a lot of time to relax. Harry talked with me about the progress of the Hopping Shelter and the Personal Body Armor projects. The design group had made a good start on the development of the shelter and expected that they would have a prototype unit ready for acceptance testing in eight months. The engineering staff was still coming up to speed on the work that had been done previously on the Personal Body Armor.

I asked about the length of time the engineers needed to build a prototype of the shelter. Harry responded, “Doug most people don’t realize how much work goes into making sure that a simple thing like this shelter is built to last and to be a quality product.

“Did you know that most of the cameras and lights used for similar purposes are sensitive to shock? We didn’t until we tried our first drop test of a shelter. We also checked after that test on the sensitivity of our electronic equipment to a high shock environment. Now we are designing shock mounts for all of the shelter’s interior equipment and for anything mounted externally. I don’t think it’s necessary, but even the chairs and beds will be shock mounted.

“This type of development takes time, Doug. We need to run a lot of different tests to ensure the shelter will perform to our design specifications. In the process, we discover flaws and fix them. But then, we have to redo our tests to ensure that the changes did not adversely affect our prior tests’ results.

“Doug, what needs to be done before Sandy can begin selling Archer products on Earth?”

“There are several things that need to be done, Harry. Sandy or more probably the two of us need to set up a business on Earth. She and I need to reach a determination as to what merchandise can be sold on Earth, without my first determining Earth’s Trade Level. You and she need to make arrangements for transportation of merchandise to Earth and payment for the merchandise. I am currently using an estimated currency exchange rate for my personal use. It would be preferable for me to determine an official currency exchange rate before you start trading. However, I am reluctant to do that at this time.”

Harry asked, “Why are you reluctant to do that, Doug?”

“Right now, the lack of an official exchange rate is one of the things that is preventing the Trade Guilds from pressuring me into declaring Earth open to trade. There is a lot of work that needs to be done to protect the commercial D-Hoppers and traders from the hazards that Earth presents to Multiverse citizens. I also need to prepare Earth citizens for the culture shock they will experience when I do open Earth for trade.

“By the time we move into the Embassy buildings, we will have resolved many of the current items that are keeping traders off Earth. Although I should qualify that by saying new things keep being brought to my attention that will need to be done, before I can declare Earth open for trade. So far, the only issue that can’t be resolved through diplomatic and political channels is the possibility of the traders becoming sugar addicts. The D-Hoppers and traders will need the services that a trader support company will provide to prevent that and other things from happening to them. That means Sandy will need to get the trader support company started before the traders arrive on Earth.

“I would like for Earth’s people to be more accepting of the Multiverse before we begin trading with them. The longer I can delay the start of trade, the more opportunity I will have to shape the opinions of Earth’s citizens.”

“I see. How long do you think it will be before the Multiverse begins to trade with Earth?”

“The Trade Guilds are thinking of twenty years, but I think it could be as early as twelve years if everything goes right.”

Misunderstanding what I said, Sandy asked, “Are you saying that it will be twelve years before I can sell Archer products on Earth?”

“No, I am not saying that, Sandy. Remember, I own the trade rights on Earth for three years. So, I can authorize you as my agent to trade now, or I think I can. I will confirm that with Maribel before we return to Earth. There is nothing to stop you from setting up a business that specializes in the Archer product lines. However, as the Ambassador, I need to determine which Archer merchandise you can sell on Earth, now.

“Everyone in the Multiverse knows that medical equipment and drugs are merchandise that is historically approved for sale on a Provisional Member World. Chairman Smart will undoubtedly want you to sell that type of merchandise and anything else that I approve for sale on Earth. Once you begin selling merchandise on Earth, I think the Trade Guilds will insist that I allow their representatives access to Earth, so they can also sell those types of merchandise there.

“As the Ambassador, I will need a valid reason to keep them off Earth. I’ve talked with Councilwoman Stanton about this problem. Maribel agrees with me about what will happen and has asked me to put together a presentation that defines what needs to be done to enable opening trade and the problems the traders will face when Earth is opened to trade.”

Sandy replied, “In other words, Councilwoman Stanton and you are hoping to scare the traders and Trade Guilds into not pushing for you to open Earth to the traders right now.”

“Yes, that’s what we are hoping for. When you start selling Archer merchandise on Earth, the Trade Guilds will view that as me opening Earth to some traders, but not their people. They are going to demand that the Multiverse Government allow their people the same opportunity. When that happens, Maribel and I will have to substantiate why they are not allowed to trade on Earth or to allow it to happen. Of course, I still have two years of the trade rights left, before they can begin coming to Earth. They won’t do anything for three years from the time I registered Earth with the Multiverse. After that, they will begin to question my reasons for not opening Earth; even though they aren’t expecting that to happen for twenty years.”

Harry added, “It sounds to me as if you have a situation that will be difficult to control or fix.”

“Well ... I could control it, but I feel my actions would be immoral; so I won’t do what I could do.”

“How could you control it, Doug?”

“Right now there are only four people who know how to get to Earth: Guild Master Moore, Sereine, Sergei’s D-Hopper Dan Staffer, and me. If we don’t bring another D-Hopper to Earth and if we don’t tell anyone where Earth is, the problem is under control. Unfortunately, that would create several major political problems between the Trade Guilds, the government, and the four of us.”

“Yeah, I can see how that could lead to problems, Doug. What do you want me to do to help you?”

“For now, let’s just wait, Harry. I have two years left before it becomes an imminent problem. Hopefully, I can delay opening Earth long enough to do what needs to be done to prevent the major problems that could arise.

“Sandy and I won’t have a problem until she starts trading on Earth. The only viable solution for that problem is for me to open Earth to trade as soon as I can. That means I need to accelerate my efforts and shorten the time needed to complete everything that I need to do to permit trade on Earth.”

As my Earth friend Slim would say, I’m caught between the Devil and the deep blue sea. Actually, the Ambassador side of me has the problem. I had warned Maribel, Kevin, and the Masters of several Trade Guilds of the dangers Earth would present to traders. If the traders fail to ask about Earth’s dangers or fail to heed my warnings, then anything that happens to them on Earth will not be my fault, but I’m the Ambassador so I’ll get the blame.

Maribel told me that a split personality was one of the professional hazards of a politician. I always thought of a split personality as something that happened to a person. I never realized that some people intentionally divide themselves into two people to separate what they needed to do from what they would like to do. That definition may not be accurate in my case, but I don’t know how else to define what I am feeling.

I want the people of Earth to evolve and join the Multiverse as a Provisional Member World. I need to open Earth for trade to do that. Opening Earth to trade will have a major cultural impact on the people of Earth and I want to protect them from that. What should I do; gradually guide their development or allow them to be hurt and help them heal?

Harry had us return to his office for further discussions about the trading venture. Mostly he wanted to talk with me about his vision of how the Archer Conglomerate should be evolved to meet the future needs of the Multiverse. I found our discussion to be very enlightening. I had never realized how far in advance Harry had to plan to ensure the Conglomerate remained one of the top ten corporations in the Multiverse.

My folks had five-year and ten-year plans for our family business. Harry had similar plans for the Archer Conglomerate, but he also had twenty five-year and fifty-year plans. To me, planning what your business would be doing fifty years from now was impossible.

As Harry explained those long-term plans, I could see that they were very different from what I thought of as a plan. There were no details of what the company should do for those were in the short-term plans. The long-term plans were more predictions of the business areas that would be the most profitable in the future. They also contained preliminary plans for when to reevaluate those predictions, and when and how to start shifting the Conglomerate’s focus if the predictions appeared to be accurate.

I complimented Harry on the foresight necessary to create his vision. Harry demurred my praise telling me that the main architect of the long-term planning was his wife Gloria. She was the one that actually deserved the credit. I think it was Kendrick who told me Harry’s wife was a very intelligent person who knew far more about business than most people thought.

It was still early afternoon when Sandy and I finished what we needed to do at the Archer Conglomerate Headquarters. I remembered to tell Janice to compliment the front desk receptionist and remind her that the Security Department was there to keep everyone safe, so she should let them know if she had a serious concern about one of our visitors.

Once we got back to the estate, I kicked back and relaxed. My critical business on Slave World was mostly taken care of. The only major concern needing to be addressed was the sugar addicts. While relaxing, I talked with Kim, Carla, Ken, Kenneth, and Bashira. I had mostly ignored them for the past day or so due to the nature of the business I had to address. We decided that we should involve ourselves in a few of the more enjoyable activities that were available here on Slave World. Kenneth suggested the Water Park, and he got stared down by Kim and Carla. Carla hadn’t visited the park, but Kim had told her about it. My four ladies were in favor of another visit to the zoo. Betty thought it was one of the better attractions on Slave World.

I agreed with all of their suggestions, even the Water Park. But the first thing I wanted to do was finish up my business with President Jenson and the sugar addicts, which would take most of tomorrow. I had an appointment with President Jenson tomorrow morning, and after that, I would meet with the sugar addicts at the treatment center. I had promised to spend some time with them on my next visit, and they needed to know about our plans for taking them back to Earth with us when we left.

Perhaps I should arrange to take them to the zoo with us the day after tomorrow. Everything considered, I don’t think taking them to the Water Park would be a good idea. The interest a few of them had shown me on my last visit would not be appreciated by my four ladies. However, my matchmaker Cindy might find their interest in me of interest to her. Personally, six women in my life were more than enough, so I didn’t need twenty plus attractive young women tempting me by going without clothes at the Water Park.

I called President Jenson’s office and spoke with Timothy. I didn’t want any last minute surprises, so I told him that I would be able to take all of the sugar addicts with me when I returned to Earth. I then asked if there were any final items that may need to be addressed. Timothy wasn’t aware of any, so I said I would see him at nine tomorrow morning. After I talked with Timothy, Kendrick called the treatment center to let them know that I would be stopping by tomorrow morning at about 10:00 to talk with the sugar addicts. I really needed to start learning their names. They would be my people shortly, and continuing to call them ‘The Sugar Addicts’ just didn’t seem right to me.

With my day planned out for tomorrow, I turned my attention to the rest of the day. I headed for the kitchen to find Charyl. She wasn’t there so I looked around the house and finally founded her relaxing on the back porch.

“Charyl, are you busy right now?”

“Oh no, sir. What do you need?”

“I was sitting in the front room talking with my guests when it occurred to me that what you need is a break. You have been fixing meals for us for so long that you must be tired. I decided that I should take you, Edgar, and the rest of my party out for dinner. Where would you like to go, and don’t pick an everyday restaurant. I would like for my guests to experience one of our better restaurants, so don’t worry about price. As you know, I can afford it.”

I had Cindy talk with Charyl and pick the best restaurant in the area. By this point in my life, I had eaten at restaurants more than I really cared for and I learned that the most highly rated restaurants were not always the best in the area.

Charyl’s way of thanking me for an outstanding evening was to fix me my favorite dish for breakfast the next day. I made sure that I let her know that I appreciated the extra effort she went to for me. Ken, Kenneth, Bashira, and Carla also made their liking of the dish known. I made a note to myself to have my folks include the ingredients for this dish in future shipments. I would certainly enjoy Betty fixing it for me and there may be a market for the ingredients on Earth. In fact, once Sandy sets up the dining facility on the ranch, she may want to diversify and establish a chain of restaurants that specialize in Multiverse cuisine.

We definitely needed to talk about the financing of her/our Trader Support business. If she owns fifty-one percent of the business and I get forty-nine percent, she will have control and we will both make a lot of money. Still it would probably be best if we worked through a holding company, and if we structure it right, we could make it look like I wasn’t associated with the Trader Support business, when I actually have a significant financial interest in the company. My Trading Company could also be registered as one of the holding company’s assets, which might help to distance my business interest from my Ambassadorial responsibilities. If Sandy wants me to put up the financing for her Trader Support business, we could arrange for Sandy to own the majority, if not all, of the company’s stock.

Do we want to merge our finances in this manner? If so, what is the best method of doing that? Keep in mind, these are only two of the questions and things we need to consider.

“Morning, Andrew. How is everything with you?”

“So far today has been great, Doug. Timothy tells me your visit is going to make it even better.”

“I hope so. I have made arrangements to take your sugar addicts back to Earth with me, if they wish to go. When we are finished here, I am going to go visit them at the treatment center to see if they are interested in the arrangements I’ve made for them.”

“Well, that’s good news. What do we need to take care of, Doug?”

“I don’t know for sure, Andrew. It’s my understanding that all the paperwork for them going with me is complete. Kendrick has the guardianship papers making me the legal guardian of everyone who is still a minor. The treatment center still needs to discharge them, and we will make arrangements for that when I visit today.

For now, they need to continue living at the treatment center until I am ready to leave for Vora. My plans are to leave for Earth from Vora a day or so after the wedding. So, other than having them discharged from the center, is there anything else you and I need to do for me to legally take everyone with me to Earth?”

“No, nothing that comes to my mind, Doug. Although you may want to remind them to make sure that any outstanding debts that they may have incurred are paid before they depart.”

“I will be sure to do that, Andrew. Kendrick, do you have anything to add that Andrew or I may have overlooked?”

“No, it seems that we have covered everything.”

Standing up, I extended my hand and said, “Well, Andrew, I’ll stop by on my future trips to let you know how things work out for my charges on Earth.”

As he shook my hand, Andrew said, “I’ll look forward to that, Doug, and good luck.”

After saying my goodbyes to Timothy and Andrew’s secretary, we headed to the treatment center. As we left, Kendrick commed the center to let them know we were on the way and should be there within a half an hour.

“Cindy, add a note to have me let Andrew know how the sugar addicts are making out on Earth during a future trip.”

“All right, Doug. Ah ... if we go to the zoo like you said we might, do you want to arrange for your sugar addicts to have any spending money in case they want to get some food or some other thing without having to ask you directly? If so, how much?”

“I hadn’t thought of it, Cindy, but that may be a good idea. Kendrick, can you arrange for each of them to have a fifty-dollar General Funds Data Chip? I think we should get four more chips for, let’s say five hundred dollars, for Ken, Kenneth, Bashira, and Carla. They may want to buy a few souvenirs before we go home.”

Cindy gave me a big smile and said, “Oh! Are we planning another visit to our costume jewelry shop on Vora? I’m certain that Mary and Sue will love to show Carla all the interesting things she can buy with five hundred dollars.”

“I wasn’t planning on such a trip, but since you mentioned it, get chips for Kim, Abby, Kenneth, Matt, Mary, Bill, and Sue also. We will have to figure out some way to ensure they don’t go too far and buy so much they get themselves or me in trouble on Earth.

“Kendrick, I just realized that I am going to need a Will. We can talk later, but I’m thinking of several specific bequests: a trust fund for Betty and Carol with Cindy, Rita, and you being the administrators, since they aren’t allowed to own property. I think Rita and Cindy should inherit the remainder of the estate, but I will need to make arrangements in case others join our relationship.”

“All right, Doug, but what prompted that decision?”

“I’m not sure. A number of thoughts have been going in circles in my head for the past few weeks ... such as the threats made against me, which have me on edge; getting married, which means I need to provide for my wives; and now dispersing money to everyone. The thought just popped out as something that needed to be done, as soon as I can get to it. I don’t expect to need a Will for a long time to come, but you never know. Look what happened to Henry.”

Discussing the details of my Will, and why I wanted one wasn’t something I wanted to do in a limousine with everyone listening. Yes, I needed one, but I also needed to think on it further to determine the best disposition of my Archer stock and other holdings.

For the rest of the drive, I let my mind wander through my remembrances of friends and associates. Most of them were just casual acquaintances, but there had been a few special people in my life; I would like to do something special for them. When I found time, I would have to start preparing a list of all my special friends. Perhaps I should do those special things for them now, so they can enjoy them for a long time to come.

Harold and Samson were a little overwhelmed earlier this morning when I told them I intended to take our thirty plus sugar addicts to the zoo tomorrow.

“Good morning. As I said a month ago, my name is Doug Smith, and I am the Multiverse’s Ambassador to a planet called Earth. I am currently in the process of opening Earth to trade with the Multiverse. President Andrew Jenson requested that I aid him, and you, with the problem of your sugar addiction. That is not criticism, just a statement of the facts.

“When I was here the last time, I told you that I would try to make arrangements for all of you to return to Earth with me. I was able to do that, and any of you that wish to go with me may do so. However ... you need to be aware of several facts.

“Up until now, the government of Slave World has been supporting you. Once I leave with those who wish to go with me, the Government will continue to support those who stay here to the best of its ability. However, funding is limited and President Jenson will not be able to support you indefinitely.

“The next thing you need to realize is, going with me does not mean a free ride. I will expect you to do several things once we get back to Earth, and I am not talking about you having sex with me. Our living area will be crowded, so everyone will have to make an effort to get along with everyone else. There will be a lot of work that needs doing. I will be marrying my four ladies, Betty, Carol, Rita, and Cindy, next month. I rely heavily on them to keep everything running smoothly in our home, and Rita is the one in charge. She will give each of you a work assignment. Do what she asks to the best of your ability and we will all get along. Those of you who choose to go with me are invited to the wedding. We will be leaving for Earth a day or two after the ceremony.

“Next, Sandy Archer will be setting up several businesses on Earth, and she will need employees. She will require that most of her employees speak English and Trade Speak. The people of Earth cannot vocalize many of the sounds required to speak Trade Speak, so that means you will have a very good chance of becoming her employees. In addition to the language, you will also need to learn many things about Earth’s culture and the ways they do things. In other words, you need to adapt to Earth’s culture.

“I will be opening a business and will also need employees who speak Trade Speak. Once the Embassy is built, I will need a staff to support me in my duties, and to care for the Embassy.

“The first thing you will need to do when you get to Earth is to go through a transition period to adapt to Earth’s language and culture. Once you have learned the language and have made sufficient progress in adapting to the culture, you can live and work anywhere that you wish. However, the details of your emigrating to Earth have not been defined. When defined, those details may impose limitations on your leaving the Embassy grounds. I don’t expect the limitations to be extremely restrictive, but we need to wait and see what develops.

“Before I continue, do any of you have a question?”

“One of the older of the young ladies stood up and said, “My name is Melanie Tumm and I have been elected to be our group spokesperson. My friends usually call me Mel. We have put together a list of questions for you about Earth. Before I get to the list, what did you mean by a transition period?”

“I was referring to the time necessary for you to adapt to Earth, and that will require you to do several things.

“First you need to complete the process of increasing your tolerance to sugar. I provided the clinic with a supply of sugar and directions for those of you who want to go to Earth with me to gradually consume larger amounts of sugar every day. The people of Earth consume large amounts of what they refer to as refined sugar. They can eat a spoonful of pure unadulterated sugar and it will not bother them. The average Multiverse citizen would go into sugar shock from eating the amount of sugar that would stick to a wetted finger. If my instructions were carried out, you all should be close to completing the process of increasing your tolerance to sugar.

“The second thing you need to do is learn how to speak English. In the Multiverse, we all speak Trade Speak and on some planets, the people also speak their planet’s native language. Earth is very different. There is no common language. There are hundreds of geographic regions, called countries, and the people of the countries speak different languages. I live in what is called the United States of America and English is spoken in that country. English is also the language of a few other countries. Some of the people of other countries also speak English, but it’s not their native language.