Kai stood at the precipice of a decision that could tip his entire operation either into stratospheric profits—or into the jaws of interstellar cartels.
He stared at the blinking message on his system interface.
Incoming Offer:Sender: Veyra Syndicate, Nexus UndermarketRequest: Exclusive Earth Distribution Rights – "BloomDust"Terms: Front 10,000 CU investment, 40% markup split, delivery protection includedWarning: Syndicate-affiliated transactions can affect Karma and Reputation
"BloomDust," he muttered.
Not a drug. Not exactly. It was a biostimulant compound that enhanced crop yield, accelerated plant growth, and subtly altered soil chemistry to boost output by 3–5x.
Legal in three realms. Banned in seven.On Earth? Unheard of.
Juno's face blinked onto the side monitor.
"Kai, we need to talk. This stuff—if Earth starts depending on it, it'll spike food productivity, yeah, but it'll also alter entire ecosystems long-term. You sure about this?"
Kai didn't hesitate.
"We'll test it first. Controlled environment. But if it works… we sell. Carefully."
The Test Farm
Within 72 hours, a secret greenhouse in a remote corner of Pakistan's countryside had been outfitted with a nutrient-injected irrigation system and dozens of sample plots.
Juno handled operations. Zhang fine-tuned the auto-analyzers. Mari ran PR cover through a dummy farming NGO.
The BloomDust worked—spectacularly.
Tomatoes tripled in size.
Spinach grew to harvestable volume in 4 days.
Even traditionally stubborn crops like millet showed unexpected yields.
The kicker? The plants tasted better.
"We can change how Earth eats," Mari whispered, wide-eyed.
"And we can profit from every bite," Kai replied.
The Deal Goes Live
Kai greenlit a limited distribution:
100 "Super Growth Kits" were quietly released to a network of organic farming circles, boutique growers, and urban greenhouses.
Demand exploded in 2 weeks.
He bundled the kits with simple energy cells and light-based growth stabilizers—trader tech wrapped in Earth-friendly branding.
They didn't know they were dealing with an interstellar syndicate.
But they knew it worked.
[Sales Complete: 100 Super Growth Kits]CU Gained: +12,000Credits: +73Earth Reputation: +15Veyra Syndicate Standing: +1Karma Shift: -2 (Borderline Ecosystem Impact)
Eyes Watching
As profits soared, so did the attention.
A shadowy message flashed across Kai's private system inbox. It wasn't routed through official channels. The language was sharp, clipped, encoded in glyphs only sovereign-level traders were expected to understand.
"We see your rise. Be cautious who you empower. Syndicate favors come with weighted chains."
— Sentinel Merchant Aelron, Guild of Neutral Trade
Juno saw it too.
"That's a Guild-level warning. They don't message unless you're on their radar. You're moving too fast, Kai."
He knew. But that was the point.
If he moved slow, he'd be devoured. If he moved too fast, he'd burn out.
But if he moved smart? He could reshape the system.
Back on the Galactic Front
Kai took stock of his Nexus inventory.
New shipments had arrived:
Ether-silk rolls from the Spindle Moons
Four containers of pressurized oxygen for desert-world auctions
Two Realm Crystals—tiny fragments that could amplify spatial nodes
And one black box.
A sealed item from Kharos Redveil. Unlabeled. No description. Just a short note:
"Use this when you're ready to cut loose from the leash."
Kai locked the box in his private vault. For now.
Status Update:
Trader Rank: 5.8CU Balance: 17,600Credits: 693Karma: +1 (Balanced Risk)Reputation:– Earth Sector: +28– Veyra Syndicate: +1– Nexus Fringe: +11– Trade Guild (Neutral): ⚠ WatchedAssets:– Merchant's Lair (Enhanced)– Earth Node x2 (Asia + Middle East)– New Test Farm (Secret Facility – Level 1)– Business Entity: "Helix Organics"– Syndicate Supplier Contract (BloomDust)– Assistants: Juno, Zhang, Mari– Locked Item: [Kharos Redveil's Box]
Kai looked out at the simulation of a thousand stars stretching across his command deck.
From a dead world on the edge of relevance… to a player in syndicate trade and galactic food revolutions.
And it was only the beginning.