Real Estate
PROLOGUE
For planet Earth, first contact with extraterrestrial life came in the United States six years after the supposed UFO crash in Roswell, New Mexico, in 1947. The little grey Zetas from the Zeta Reticula star system arrived at the new top secret military research facility outside Groom Lake, Nevada. Every human involved in the first contact was thankful the clever Zeta's elected to land their flying saucer in the most secret Area 51 location so that no other souls knew a damn thing about it. President Dwight D. Eisenhower was, however, fully briefed as to the incredible new situation and he and his people flew out to Nevada to officially greet the so called alien ambassadors. Henceforth, negotiations between the human civilization and the Zetan civilization commenced, resulting in a treaty of non-hostility and an agreement to trade human and animal genetic material with the Zetas for their alien technology. It was never clearly understood what the Zetas wanted such genetic material for, but the researchers at Area 51 and elsewhere examining the Zetan technology they traded for did experience more than one leap forward, technologically speaking, with the invention and application of the microchip and other useful technologies adapted from the Zeta’s.
The Zetas were but the first aliens to eventually contact the other citizens of Earth. After everything the Zetas came to accomplish was completed, about 100 years after they first arrived, their taskmasters, the reptilian Draconians arrived, this time with 500 million Zetan clones and with over two billion of their own kind, claiming they sought refuge. They cited, an environmental disaster made their home-world uninhabitable. The Draconian's promised to share with humankind even more fantastic advanced technology. World leaders agreed to host the Draconians and their Zetan slaves since slavery was commonplace on Earth in 2054. Among the rich humans, they were eager to have a cute little grey Zetan slave of their own and to that end the Draconians promised to clone as many Zetan slaves as humanity required.
But the Draconians and Zetas were not the only aliens making an exodus to Earth. Soon after the Draconians and Zetas settled in to life on Earth, two billion insectoid Nagoths arrived in massive mother-ships. The Nagoths like the Draconians and Zetas sought refuge on Earth claiming a similar environmental disaster occurred where they came from, forcing them to evacuate their home-world. It meant the already overpopulated Earth would now be home to some five billion aliens!
While these major alien cultures did share a modicum of their technology with the human civilization, it was soon discovered by human scientists that these alien cultures were immensely old, on the order of millions of years and their indestructible and self-repairing technology was equally as old. It meant these people, while still in the habit of relying on their now ancient technology, had long since forgotten how to manufacture more of the same and likewise, none of them actually understood how their technology worked. By then the use of their own technology was boiled down to religious rituals which could convince the technology to operate well enough, but even at that, these people had little understanding as to what else some of their forgotten technology might accomplish.
While the Draconians and the Nagoths both arrived in highly advanced motherships filled with fantastic technology, for the most part the mother-ships traveled entirely automated, meaning little was gained by interviewing the so called pilots, whom, it turned out, were actually high priests who used rituals to convince the mother-ships to travel where they did. Nevertheless, both the Draconians and Nagoths invited the human scientists to remove and take elsewhere whatever alien technology they wanted. Thus some of the mother-ships were partly dismantled after the lot of mother-ships was placed in storage orbiting the moon.
There was, however, one item of alien technology the human scientists managed to figure out and replicate and that was the anti-gravity engines that ran the flying saucers the aliens used to shuttle their people from the mother-ships to the planet's surface. It was soon discovered the basic design of a flying saucer was necessary for the anti-gravity engines to operate efficiently. It meant everyone concerned benefitted from easy access to flying saucers for all forms of earthbound travel, as well as for technicians to travel back-and-forth to the moon to continue the reverse engineering of the alien's technology.
Some 75 years after the alien exodus, in the year 2125, human beings and aliens were fully integrated, only the planet was overpopulated and impoverished almost everywhere, while still being ruled by the same old rich bloodlines and career politicians who endlessly promised an end to global poverty while actually doing nothing about it at all. The whole world continued to hold on to hope that something or someone would arrive to rescue them.
I
The various alien refugees selected the Earth for immigration essentially because at that time planet Earth’s atmosphere wasn't completely polluted and toxic like the atmosphere on their home-worlds even though the polluted conditions therein were entirely self-created by them. These aliens didn't go into too much detail as to exactly what happened to their home-worlds. This left their human hosts unsuspecting of the use of alien technology which was equally dangerous on Earth as it was on the alien planets and would pollute the Earth to a great extent after the technology was in full operation some 49 years. Global leaders realized far too late that the degree of pollution and toxicity in the atmosphere meant that although the planet would continue being habitable possibly another 50 years, the environment was so damaged that all manner of life would die from disease, dehydration, and world famine.
Thus, life was difficult for Z-lop, an insectoid Nagoth child, as well as for his family. They, like most people on the very impoverished Earth, lived in abject poverty while dwelling in a homemade shack in a massive shantytown, since by the year 2174 slums were commonplace on a global scale. For Z-lop, it was highly improbable that when he matured into an adult he would manage to escape his poverty stricken condition due to the fact that the extremes of poverty was the average station in life, and within this overpopulated world, there were no longer enough slices of the proverbial pie to go around. In truth the old pie had already been completely consumed a good hundred years prior, meaning not even crumbs were leftover to uplift the poor and downtrodden!
On this day Z-lop and his sister Xena took their recycled plastic sack with them when they both paid a visit to the immense garbage dump that surrounded their shanty town. In most instances, the dump was already well picked over, but little Z-lop and Xena were clever and knew places in the dump that had been overlooked wherein they sometimes found objects of value that could be recycled, repaired, or simply cleaned. These things could then be bartered with, bartering being the normal method by which these poor people conducted business because any actual money they possessed had to be reserved for items that could not be scavenged from the dump. They bartered for primarily rations of Nutraloaf wafers and partially contaminated yet potable water, and enough of both to feed everyone in the family, if in fact, such families managed to stay together.
Most inhabitants of the Earth were single individuals because in this age of austerity, cohabitation with the opposite sex and legally having children was usually too cost prohibitive and too difficult to sustain. Overpopulation required strict controls over new births, meaning baby licenses were issued only sporadically. For Z-lop and Xena's parents, they produced two offspring illegally, so both parents ran the risk of being severely penalized if anyone caught them having two unlicensed children.
The Progeny Authority didn't actually have the resources to adequately police the situation, meaning millions of people formed small families and produced offspring illegally, living in forgotten places the authority didn't patrol or care very much about. After all, it was said: "one can't squeeze blood from turnips!" Penalizing people who would never be able to afford to pay off a heavy fine was a total waste of time and limited resources. Thus the Progeny Authority limited it's policing to middle and upper class neighborhoods wherein anyone caught in violation could afford to pay the stiff fines in order to legitimize their illegal offspring. Nevertheless, there were raids in the slums so families were always looking over their shoulders in fear of being caught.
As Z-lop dug through the refuse, he found something technologic in nature because it was obviously made from shiny metal and had what looked like plastic jewels and buttons festooning its surfaces. Z-lop pulled the device free and out of the rubbish and it was just the right size for him to conceal in his bag and carry back with him. Z-lop was excited because he already knew something like what he just found be worth something of higher value than the typical junk he or his sister usually came across. Z-lop knew his father might be able to determine exactly what the thing he found was supposed to be. Z-lop shoved the device inside his opaque plastic sack so none of the others would see what he found then he collected his sister and explained they both needed to hurry and run home. Xena was curious:
"Is it because of what you've got inside your sack? Did you find something good this time?"
Z-lop replied:
"Let's not talk about it here where the others might find out! We need to run home and show father what I found. Then you'll see what it looks like. Father can tell us what it's for!"
****
Z-lop and Xena's father, Xenon greeted the two children as they came inside into the room where he sat smoking ganjeet, a mildly intoxicating alien weed.
"Well, well...if you two came back so soon, am I to assume one of you found something good?"
Z-lop looked excited.
"Yes, father I did find something I think is good! I don't know what it's for but it's shiny and comes with plastic jewels!"
Xenon took Z-lop’s sack and pulled the thing out from inside it. The old insect was immediately impressed.
"My son, do my three eyes deceive me? This object isn't just shiny, but it is gilded in gold! And these plastic jewels I think may actually be precious gem stones! I can't believe one of my children found this object in the garbage dump! It is obviously a precious object someone unfortunate must have lost! No one would just discard something expensive and valuable like this! You were lucky to have found this thing before one of the others did! We must hide the thing in another more durable sack then together we shall pay a visit to a vendor to allow him to appraise what you have found. Then we shall discover for ourselves exactly what its worth and then sell it to the vendor for a fair price and be rich! Come my children let us depart."
****
Xenon and his two children entered into the vendors abode. The vendor was a fat Nagoth too overweight to fly. Xenon saw the fat one's wings had atrophied and were so shriveled they were completely useless to him. The children stood behind their father as the fat one spoke.
"Good interval, come in, come in. Then we'll see what you have brought me to barter over."
Xenon carefully put his sack on the counter top then methodically removed the shiny bejeweled object. The vendor was instantly amazed.
"Great Nagoth gods! I had yet to lay eyes upon something as splendid as this coming into my domain. What is this gilded and bejeweled object?"
Xenon was cautious.
"We do not know what it is for or what it might do. We hoped someone like you, who has bartered and sold so many different things, might have come across something like it in the past."
The vendor snorted.
"We may not know what it is for or what it does but one needn't know so much to tell whatever it is, it is made of gold and is festooned with precious gem stones. I can then place value on the object based solely on the materials it is hewn from. First I'll analyze the amount of gold it has, to determine if it is merely plated in gold or is composed of solid gold."
The vendor placed the object inside his molecular scanner and let it measure the elements contained in the object.
"Holy, Malsuvious! The scanner reports this object is composed almost entirely from solid gold! Including its internal parts as the scan demonstrates this is not merely a gilded and bejeweled sculpture, but it is some kind of mechanism or device. Now let's have a closer look at these jewels."
The vendor placed the magnifying monocle in his center eye and squinted through it gauging if the gems were real of artificial.
"Dare I admit these gems are not only real but they are each perfectly flawless! There are emeralds, rubies, amethyst, amber, and diamonds! I can tell you this object is far too expensive for someone as lowly as me to purchase, but I must have it! Please try to understand."
Xenon was shocked when the vendor produced a plasma-pistol and pointed it in his face.
"I see! It is your intention to rob us, is it not?"
The vendor laughed.
"Only a fool such as you would attempt to sell something priceless in a vendor’s shop so close to the slums and garbage dump! I am forced to deal in recycled trinkets. What this object will fetch me will buy my way out of this slum and into a palace fit for a king."
Xenon smiled.
"Unfortunately for you sir, your obesity prevented you from noticing my son has slipped up behind you! I armed him with a disruptor and he's got it in your back! Now just hand over your weapon and we'll be on our way and with our priceless object."
The fat insect indeed felt it when something poked him between the atrophied wings in the small of his back. He got scared for his life and handed over his weapon to Xenon.
"Damn all children!"
Xenon then leveled the fat one’s own weapon at him.
"You can come out from behind him now, Z-lop."
Z-lop obeyed his father and came out from behind the counter where the fat one stood to stand beside his father. Z-lop then brought his index finger and outstretched thumb to his mouth and blew his breath across it as though he was a gunslinger fresh from having slain an opponent blowing the smoke away from the barrel of his gun. The vendor realized then he had been taken for a fool. These Nagoth weren't armed and now he had foolishly handed over his own weapon!
"We'll be leaving now. I'll just hold onto this plasma-pistol for safekeeping and in case you are so overcome with greed you try to follow us. I'll advise you to stay put inside your shop until we are long gone from here. I do not intend to be relieved by force of our so called priceless object!"
The vendor helplessly stood by as the three insects left his shop. Xenon spoke to his children.
"Well, at least we now know how valuable the object is! I presume others might wish to steal it from us so that is why I took the fat one’s pistol! I'll be sure to demonstrate we came prepared to defend our possession when we show the object to the next vendor, but we know the ones nearest to us will never be able to afford to pay us for this thing. We must return home and pack some things because I understand now we three must make a journey as far from this slum as we can go to find a rich vendor that may be able to meet our price as soon as that one makes an offer we can accept. Come, lets us return home and prepare ourselves for this trip."
II
The Nagoth father, Xenon took his two children, the boy Z-lop and the girl Xena with him on a journey. They traveled outside the slums until the three walked into the city proper and ventured well into it until they came to the wealthy section. It was filled with fancy and expensive shops, five star restaurants and large mansion-like domiciles. Xenon offered comment.
"It was necessary for us to get as far as possible from the Nagoth slums. This part of the city is home to the rich Draconians. We'll find a Draconian vendor to barter with."
The three Nagoths walked until they came to stand before the storefront of a Draconian jeweler. Xenon and his children entered the foyer as Xenon thumbed the button to signal the Draconian vendor inside they wished to enter his shop. The vendor examined the three standing inside the chamber, and scanned them and found that the big one carried a weapon and some object in a bag.
"Place your weapon inside the adjacent box. It will be returned to you as you depart."
Xenon saw a little door slide open revealing a box he presumed was intended to collect customer's weapons. He took the Nagoth vendor's plasma-pistol and placed it inside the box. The box's door slid shut automatically. Then they heard a buzzing sound as the lock on the door was triggered clicked open remotely by the vendor inside and the Nagoth family could enter the shop. The Draconian vendor muttered under his breath.
"What could these filthy, broke Nagoths want?"
Then the vendor saw that the big one carried a sack he presumed was filled with whatever item these Nagoth wished to barter over. Xenon placed the sack on top of the counter and revealed its contents. As soon as the Draconian vendor saw what Xenon offered, he was amazed and smitten. He didn't need to think about what to say next.
"I'll give you a million credits for this object, no questions asked!"
Xenon was impressed. After taxes, the credits that would be left would set him and his family up nicely. Such a sum meant they could all escape the slums and live in a proper house and in a decent neighborhood far from the shanty town. Xenon didn't wish to risk being turned away if he haggled for more than what was already offered.
"It's a deal!"
The vendor replied:
"Please present me with your debit chip and I'll adjust my wand to transfer the sum to your chip. Of course, as you well know, any transfer of monies beyond a thousand credits is automatically reported to Corporate and they will automatically tax the transfer the usual 75%."
Xenon placed his left arm on the countertop and upturned his wrist where the debit chip was implanted. After the transfer and taxation, Xenon used his own wand to verify there was the remainder where it belonged, a sum of some 250,000 credits! Once Xenon saw he had the proper amount, he was well pleased. He thanked the Draconian vendor and the three departed going out the way they came in. Xenon retrieved the pistol he thought might be useful in the future and especially in the event someone tried to rob him and force a transfer off his debit chip now that he was loaded with credits.
Meanwhile, the Draconian vendor was left to marvel over the object he knew to be infinitely ancient as well as priceless. It was worth exponentially more than a mere million credits. That Nagoth he bartered with obviously had no idea whatsoever what he actually found. This was because the gilded and bejeweled object was recognizable by any knowledgeable Draconian familiar with his people's folklore and religion. The legend stated the Draconians and many other races of people elsewhere in the galaxy were all seeded by a fantastically advanced and equally ancient civilization of robots known as the Zebulons. It was said the Zebulons survived even into the modern age and they had on occasion rescued entire planets on the verge of destroying themselves. Prior to these rescues, the Zebulons sent forth to each planet a device that was a kind of interstellar transmitter meant to serve those people as a tool by which they could commence communication with the Zebulons millions of light years distant. This vendor recognized the object the Nagoth brought in to sell as being one of the Zebulon's interstellar transmitters!
There was, however, a snag. The vendor knew the legend stated these devices were activated utilizing a special key, but with this one the vendor could see the key was missing. Without that key, the device could never be made to function and the key itself was impossible to fabricate because it was said to be composed of an element found only on Zebulon. Still, the vendor knew the transmitter was priceless nonetheless and it was his intention to see to it the device was placed into the hands of proper authorities. He would leave it up to them to start a worldwide search to find the missing key. That was if the “Powers That Be” had intentions to communicate with the Zebulons.
The vendor knew well enough Earth was in dire straights and was likely on the verge of total environmental collapse. Why else would the Zebulons have sent forth the transmitter? It was just fortunate for him some Nagoths found it and failed recognize what it was. The vendor knew he would be paid a hundred times what he just spent to acquire the device by the beings he would soon barter with. As for finding the all-important key, this particular Draconian vendor wasn't very concerned. He didn’t actually care if anyone found the key or not. He would merely pass forward the contact information concerning the Nagoths from whom he purchased the device. That Nagoth would soon discover for his money he was going to end up being descended upon by the authorities. They would want to know where the device was first found so as to start their search for the missing key in the same location as well as to determine if these same Nagoths had already found the key and still possessed it.
****