It was about eight o’clock in the evening when Rob Milbank got an interstellar call. He normally diverted most of his calls to a switchboard when out of the office. He had a white list of friends and important politicians who could reach him at home. But he had also white-listed interstellar calls for the time being.
Milbank excused himself from his evening at home with his wife, Julia Whitcomb, and headed into his home office to take the call.
Milbank found himself facing someone he didn’t know. His caller had a typical colonial mixed ancestry, and was a mix of European and Oriental backgrounds. Perhaps some African ancestry as well. He was perhaps forty-five years old.
For his part, Wang found himself facing a big man in some sort of loudly patterned wrap around garment and naked from the waist up. He looked to Wang to be about a hundred years old. Correcting for the lack of juvenalis drugs on Arcadia, he figured Milbank to be approaching seventy.
“Rob Milbank here.”
“Good evening, Mr. Prime Minister. I am Henry Wang, President of Tahiti. I’m sorry to disturb you at home.”
“No, no, Mr. President. That’s fine. How are you? I take it our mission to Tahiti has arrived.”
“Yes, Mr. Prime Minister. Not without incident, however. After the second six-week leg of their journey in zero gravity, Ambassador Paul Chen-Jasic suffered a heart attack with the reimposition of gravity on deceleration into Tahiti’s atmosphere.”
“How is he doing, Mr. President? Has he survived?”
“Yes, Mr. Prime Minister. Your Mr. Belsky handled the situation admirably, declaring a medical emergency, and we diverted the incoming shuttle directly to the shuttlepad on the roof of the hospital here. Mr. Chen-Jasic has been stabilized, and is resting comfortably pending further treatment. Madam Chen was also admitted to the hospital pending treatment.”
“That’s very good news, Mr. President. They are among our most prominent citizens.”
“Yes, I’m aware, Mr. Prime Minister. However, that leaves us to work out the details of any arrangement between our planets by ourselves, for the moment at least.”
Milbank nodded.
“Very well, Mr. President. Do you have any questions for me?”
“Yes, Mr. Prime Minister. I suppose the first one is obvious. What is your mission here on Tahiti?”
“We hope to implement a free trade agreement between Tahiti and the other four planets who have signed up, on an equal basis for each.”
“Four planets, Mr. Prime Minister? That would be Arcadia, Earthsea, Amber, and whom?”
“Playa, Mr. President. Our mission to Playa left Earthsea a couple of weeks before our mission to Tahiti, and Playa has already joined the agreement.”
“I see, Mr. Prime Minister. May I have a copy of the text of this agreement?”
“Of course, Mr. President. Transmitting now.”
“Thank you, Mr. Prime Minister. I will review the agreement with our people here and we will discuss it in a later call.”
“Of course, Mr. President.”
“My next question is about the QE radios, Mr. Prime Minister. On what basis are those being provided?”
“Earthsea is donating QE radio service for the period of our negotiations, Mr. President. If you join the free trade agreement, QE radio service is one of the things Earthsea has to trade. Pricing is yet to be determined, as is pricing for freight shipping on the hyperspace liners we will be bringing into service late this year.”
“How will those prices be determined, Mr. Prime Minister?”
“In a competitive free market, Mr. President.”
“Those things would be relatively price inelastic, though, Mr. Prime Minister. They are both monopoly positions.”
Milbank nodded. Wang was clearly not a lightweight, though he looked young to be a planetary president.
“Yes, Mr. President. But all the colony planets have similar monopoly positions in some technology product or service. Amber has medical nanotechnology that successfully treats some very difficult diseases. Playa makes robots that can perform many manual tasks, freeing up people for more inventive and creative tasks.
“I see, Mr. Prime Minister. And Tahiti would fit in how?”
“How old do you think I am, Mr. President?”
“Without any age-delaying drugs, Mr. Prime Minister? I would say approaching seventy years old.”
“And on Tahiti, Mr. President? How old would you guess I was, if I were on Tahiti?”
“More like a hundred years old, Mr. Prime Minister. I myself am seventy years old.”
“So you see, Mr. President. We are the same age, yet you clearly have the advantage of me. And Tahiti has just as much of a monopoly, price-inelastic position in that area as Arcadia does in hyperspace shipping or Earthsea has in QE radios.”
Wang nodded.
“And the protections, Mr. Prime Minister?”
“The only protections are those of a free market, Mr. President. Each planet agrees to provide their products and services at the same price to their foreign trade as to their domestic customers. And each planet agrees to impose no taxes or customs to their imports that they do not impose on their domestic sales.”
“That’s it, Mr. Prime Minister?”
“That’s it, Mr. President. Clean and simple.”
“There will be those who try to cheat, Mr. Prime Minister.”
“Of course, Mr. President. But in the end, they will only hurt themselves.”
Wang nodded.
“Very well, Mr. Prime Minister. Mr. Belsky tells me he is prepared to hook up and activate the QE radios they have brought along, and we will get that under way. We will also review this agreement and get back to you.”
“Thank you, Mr. President. Our mission to Tahiti brought other gifts as well, and Mr. Belsky can deliver those to you with our compliments.”
“Thank you, Mr. President. And thank you for your time this evening. We will keep you informed as to the health condition of Mr. Chen-Jasic and Madam Chen.”
“Thank you, Mr. President. I appreciate that.”
“Good evening, Mr. Prime Minister.”
“Good evening Mr. President. Thank you for calling.”
Chen JuPing woke up in the hospital bed in Papeete. Yesterday had been a nightmare. After all these years, she had almost lost Paul. Her sleep had been disturbed by nightmares in which they had not made it in time. In which he had been DOA at the hospital, or he had slipped away before they could stabilize him.
JuPing looked over to the other bed in the room. He looked a lot better this morning, and was sleeping soundly. She sighed.
So close.
But they had made it. Made it to the one hospital in all of human space that could treat the deadly medical condition from which they both suffered.
Old age.
Stuart Reynolds padded into the room. He had a little pot of tea and a tea set on a tray. He poured a cup for her and set it on her lap table. Walnut. What had been a gift for the president of Tahiti, she guessed.
It was like a taste of home, and relaxed her immensely.
She looked her gratitude to Reynolds, and he nodded.
“What do you think of the agreement, Jake?”
“I can’t believe how simple it is, Hank. I expected pages and pages of legalese and mumbo-jumbo. You know, protections for this and exemptions for that. There’s none of that.”
“No. None at all.”
They were sitting in Henry Wang’s office enjoying a cup of the coffee that had been part of the gifts to Tahiti that arrived with the shuttle. Belsky had seen them unloaded when he dismounted the shuttle to free up the planetary radios for installation. That should get done today.
Meeting in Wang’s office was symbolic of Keller’s acquiescence of the foreign policy role to Wang.
“Of course, you know people will try to cheat,” Keller said.
“Yes, Jake, but the agreement does deal with that.”
Keller nodded.
“Yes,” he said. “Reciprocal sanctions. If you put a ten percent surcharge on my goods, I can put a ten percent surcharge on yours.”
“Which reduces trade to and from that one colony due to the increase in prices. That’s pretty simple microeconomics. And reduced trade hurts the colony doing it. Over the long haul, it hurts them a lot.”
“I understand, Hank. I think it may even work.”
“So you think I should sign it, Jake?”
“Yes. That’s my advice. Sign it, and I’ll take it to the legislature for approval.”
“Will the legislature approve it?”
“Yes. My majority is pretty good at the moment, and I’ll push it. I’ll pick up a few people on the other side of the aisle, for that matter.”
“Then I think we have a deal.”
It was about two weeks after their arrival on Tahiti that Henry Wang stopped into the hospital to visit Paul Chen-Jasic and Chen JuPing. They were wearing fleece loungers, and relaxing after their latest treatment.
Stuart Reynolds, ever-present by their side, stood when the president entered the room, but Wang waved him to sit.
“Good day, Mr. President,” JuPing said.
“Hello to both of you. It’s good to meet you at last. I would have stopped by sooner, but we’ve both been busy.”
JuPing chuckled.
“Yes, Mr. President. I think we present something of a challenge match for your anti-aging people. They haven’t dealt with someone our age without your juvi drugs for a long time. They’re falling all over themselves to try this or that treatment.”
Wang smiled.
“Have they given you any prognosis, Madam Ambassador? Any idea of what is possible?”
“My understanding is that your technology slows the aging process to about fifty percent of what it would normally be after age twenty-five. You look to be in your late forties, Mr. President, so I would guess your actual age to be about seventy.”
“Yes, Madam Ambassador. That’s correct.”
“Now that’s with treatment beginning at age twenty-five, Mr. President. For someone like us, for whom the aging has already occurred, they can get perhaps half the benefit, and then hold it to half the rate going forward.”
“That’s my understanding as well, Madam Ambassador.”
“If that’s the case, Mr. President, at a hundred years old, they can back us up perhaps nineteen or twenty years. To the early eighties. But it will take us nearly forty years to get to an apparent age of a hundred again.”
“After that last treatment, I feel like I’m only ninety again,” Paul said, and JuPing and Wang laughed.
“Have they said how long the treatments will take, Madam Ambassador?”
“Perhaps three months, perhaps six. They’re in uncharted waters, Mr. President. They just don’t know.”
Wang nodded.
“Well, then, Madam Ambassador, I think you’ll want to send Mr. Belsky back to Arcadia with the shuttle. You can go back home yourself on a hyperliner once passenger traffic starts.”
“Send Mr. Belsky home, Mr. President?”
“Yes, Madam Ambassador. One reason I stopped by today was to inform you that your mission was a success. I have signed, and the legislature has approved, the free trade agreement you came to negotiate.”
“Those were the easiest negotiations I’ve ever participated in, Mr. President.”
“Mr. Belsky was instrumental in putting me in touch with your prime minister, Madam Ambassador. Mr. Milbank and I had several fruitful conversations. We are the same age, and have much the same viewpoint on many things.”
“Rob’s a good man.”
“Indeed,” Wang said. “I’ve also opened up the QE radio system to public use, Madam Ambassador, so you are free now to call friends back home and tell them how you’re doing. I have been assuring people, but they are very worried about you both.”
JuPing nodded. She reached across the gap between the beds and took Paul’s hand.
“We’re fine, Mr. President. But we just made it. To the one place in human space that could treat old age itself.”
“I understand from Mr. Milbank that it is by your own hand, Madam Ambassador. If you hadn’t been so instrumental in bringing about hyperspace travel, you wouldn’t have.”
JuPing nodded, and Paul spoke up.
“We were lucky,” he said.
“Stuart,” JuPing said.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Stuart, you should go back to Arcadia with Mr. Belsky.”
“But, ma’am, my place is here. With you.”
JuPing shook her head.
“No, Stuart. You’re place is on Arcadia. You’re a young man, and have a life to live. We are being well cared for here, and will not need a caregiver once we are discharged. You’ve been very good to us, and we appreciate your service, but it’s time for you to move on.”
“Well, if you’re sure, ma’am,....”
“Yes, Stuart. We’re sure. And Mr. Belsky needs some company on the long trip home. First to Earthsea, then on to Arcadia. Twelve weeks total. Even with QE radio, he’ll go mad without some company.”
“All right, ma’am. Sir. As long as you’re sure.”
JuPing nodded.
“And we’ve given you a separation payment, Stuart,” Paul said. “Regular payment through your trip back home, and a separation payment in gratitude for your service.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“Do stay in touch with us, Stuart,” JuPing said. “QE radio means we can chat now and again.”
“Of course, ma’am.”
“Well, Mr. Reynolds. Are you ready to depart for home?” Belsky asked.
“Yes, Mr. Belsky. At your convenience.”
Belsky nodded.
“Hyper-3 to Tahiti Air Traffic Control.”
“Go ahead, Hyper-3.”
“Hyper-3 requesting takeoff and clearance to space. Over.”
“Roger Hyper-3. You are cleared for takeoff and departure to space on heading zero niner. Over.”
“Roger, Tahiti Control. Cleared for takeoff and departure to space on heading zero niner. Over.”
“Good spacing, Hyper-3. Tahiti Control out.”
Belsky throttled up the engines and waited for them to spool up. When he had RPMs, he focused the thrust and Hyper-3 and its two pendent containers lifted off shuttlepad 14 of the Papeete Capital Shuttleport.
Once under way, Reynolds had a question.
“I meant to ask you, Igor. What’s in the other container?”
Belsky turned to Reynolds and grinned.
“Apples.”
Reynolds nodded. The apples on Tahiti were incredible. As was the apple sauce, the apple cider – everything apple.
“Makes sense.”
“Oh, but it gets better, Stu.”
“Yes?”
“I brought apple pie.”
Chen JuPing heard the shuttle pass overhead. She turned to look out the east-facing window of their hospital room and watched it go.
“Good spacing,” she whispered.
She turned her attention back to her dessert.
They really did make the best apple pie here.