A landscape of associations: what does thought look like?

 When I think about a subject, there are three steps to my mind's retrieval of information about said subject. First is the high-level archival search that spreads through my mind and locates all relevant pieces of information. I choose one of those pieces, and it enters step two: visualization. I imagine a landscape that in some way represents the thought or piece of information and everything related to it. If it is something to do with koalas, for example, I see a koala on a tree in my mind. I then focus in onto one of the elements of the visualization and my mind generates a "notes" list about that element. For example, I'll focus here on the tree the koala is hanging on. Did you know that there are hundreds of species of eucalyptus, but the koala only eats about thirty of them? Did you know that eucalyptus is poisonous to other animals? Et cetera et cetera. 

Then my mind opens hyperlinks to other things that are related to the information I just retrieved.

I have two ways of internalizing a subject. First is the deep connection method. If I learn something new about a subject that fits into my model of the world, it sticks like flies to fly paper. My second way of internalizing a subject is the "cud" model of assimilation. When I discover a new thought or a piece of information that will require effort to retain, I spin it through my mind's focus engine for a couple of rotations. After I chew the intellectual cud enough, it becomes part of my association network. 

I feel as if my mind is a complex, rotating object that spits information out and reprocesses it. At the same time, it is an empty ocean filled with small points of entry that will let loose a large amount of material. 

How does your mind work? Do you even see inside your own head the way I do? 

Why fiat and commodity currency are not so different after all

 Before 1964, all US quarters were made of (mostly) silver. Paper money was just a promise that silver would be given to you upon request. While gold and silver are pretty, and are useful in many applications, it is their scarcity that makes them valuable.

Here I must go into a bit of monetary theory. I will put forth that money's worth is based on its scarcity. It does not matter where that scarcity comes from. This is a fundamental underpinning of what I will present next. 

The reason why commodity money is seen as "more real" than fiat currency is only because precious metals' scarcity is natural, not artificial. A government has a hard time inflating a precious metal or commodity currency, and thus people trust it, as the only player in the currency's inflation rate is the Earth itself--though there are many ways around this. 

I will present, as an example, what happening in California during the gold rush. Everything there was ten, twenty times the price, in gold, of what it was in other places around the nation. This is because, in this instance, gold was inflated. It fell prey to the same failures that people attribute to fiat currency. 

Again, imagine if someone were to bring back a metal-rich asteroid in a world where money was still tied to the price of gold. The price of gold would drop to almost nothing, and the entire monetary system would fall apart. Hyperinflation would reign.

I believe that commodity money is useful for securing trust in the entity that issues that currency. It makes money harder to inflate. This mattered more before centralized governments handled by monetary experts with advanced degrees and (hopefully) high qualifications as economists. Fiat currency's scarcity is artificial, but with a government that is smart, that shouldn't make a difference. The scarcity of a dollar bill is the same basic scarcity as an ounce of gold. There are only so many of them around. 

I believe that fiat currency is better suited to modern western democracies, as they allow the government the freedom to play with the monetary supply. This matters, as it allows the government to employ Keynesian economics to the economy without having to divest huge stores of material. You may call this a bad deal, but as long as trust remains and the government in question is relatively honest, this can only be a good thing. Fiat currency is not tied to the whims of the Earth itself. As long as the government printing the money remains less erratic than the Earth itself, then fiat currency is a smart choice.  

It's impossible to exploit someone voluntarily

 I keep seeing memes on reddit about "worker exploitation" being the reason why billionaires made their money. But what, exactly, do the posters mean by "worker exploitation?" What, exactly, is exploitation in the first place? My mother is an employment lawyer who has spent her entire career dealing with worker-business relationships, and not once in her case law (that she's told me) have I heard of actual exploitation. 

I'm not talking about minimum wage factory workers or janitors. If you think being paid minimum wage or just above it to work on an assembly line is exploitation, then you obviously have not understood the depths to which humanity can go when it comes to forced labor. Example: slavery of any kind is worker exploitation. Being forced to work grueling jobs without being paid and most likely without being fed properly without your consent is exploitation. Not voluntarily working at a factory for minimum wage. 

By continuing to work at your job in modern America, you are complicit. You can terminate your employment at any point. Homelessness is, by far, the worst that can happen to you if you do quit your job. 

And there are a million things worse than homelessness in America. I'm talking gulag. I'm talking being a woman, who has just given birth, who is forced to work the fields at a collective farm with her placenta still hanging out, dragging behind her. (This actually happened in communist China.) I'm talking working under the whip. That's worker exploitation. You may argue that there are sweatshops in developing countries; those are the workers who are being exploited! Well, no, not technically, as they are still being paid. While they may not be paid much compared to modern American standards, they are still earning money. They are being compensated for their work. And I do believe that, under most modern governments, companies are not allowed to force labor or compliance. The ones that do are the exception, not the rule, and they are actively being eliminated by many different organizations, both government and otherwise.

Voluntary work for pay, no matter how small compared to our standards, is not exploitation, but rather a trade that benefits both sides. Real exploitation happens when a worker is forced to do something against their will without being compensated in any real way. Think gulags and work camps. One company that comes to mind that has actually exploited workers is Mitsubishi. During WWII, Mitsubishi used forced American prisoner of war labor in their supply chains. So I'm not saying that companies never exploit their workers. I'm just saying that calling minimum wage to do a difficult job voluntarily "exploitation" only makes sense when we consider our modern American privilege. The next time you hear someone call a billionaire a villain for "exploiting" their workers, check your privilege. You don't know what real worker exploitation feels like.

Change how you think about taxes.

 Here's the conventional way to think about taxes: the government takes money from the individual or corporation and adds it to a balance sheet that they keep, and then they spend the money on that balance sheet, plus some extra, to do things. 

I think that this view of taxation is actually flawed in a way I will explain in this article. I will put forth my new way of viewing taxes here.

The government has the ability to print money whenever they want, as much as they want, but the consequences of that action (namely, inflation) keep the government from doing as such. So they take money from individuals and corporations in order to pay for their expenditures.

Except, this isn't how it works if you flip it on its head. In math, your reference point matters as much or more than the transformations you do to it. The government isn't taking your money in order to pay their expenses; it's taking your money to remove money from the monetary pool, thus allowing them to add money back to the pool with minimal inflation. 

To clarify, the government doesn't take money. It deletes it, and then creates it again when it injects it back into the economy through expenditures. The government isn't managing a budget like a normal household is; that is, money in, money out. They are managing a money supply; that is, money out, money in. Any tax revenue is actually money deleted from the money supply. Any expenditures is money added back into the money supply. 

I like to think of the book Ender's Game, where a critical plot point hinges on the players believeing that their enemy's gate is down instead of to the side, thus allowing them to better act using spatial kinesthetic senses. When you consider taxes to be deletions from the money supply instead of the government actually gaining money on some account book, it allows you to more easily imagine exactly what that money is doing to the government and the economy. 

And I just think that it's an interesting thought experiment. I believe this flip of perspective could be helpful in pointing out critical flaws in government and other people's ideas of what government is for. In the end, I think this way of viewing taxation and spending is a useful tool, though I don't yet know what it could be used for. 

The Special Economic Zone Chapter 14: A New Beginning

 

The Second Beginning

Aki stood next to the horse-drawn carriage that would take them to Albern. Jolly and Yeer stood next to her, kitted out with all-new dwarven armor and weapons. They looked a proper force with their uniforms. Aki turned to them.

“Are you ready, soldiers?”

“Yes, Ma’am.” The two new adventurers saluted.

Aki stomped her foot. “Then climb aboard.”

The three of them climbed onto the carriage and set out for Albern. About two hours into their journey, they passed through the mountain road that led out of Farrow Dells. Conversation was sparse in the first few hours of the journey. The road was not well-maintained and the ride was bumpy enough to cause Aki discomfort. She hoped that Thorn would get around to improving the roads. When they crested the mountain and started going down its western side, Jolly asked Aki a question.

“Do you have any family?”

Aki grimaced. “Under normal circumstances I would kill someone who asked me that.”

“But we’re not under normal circumstances.” Jolly pushed forward with a brave face.

Aki snorted smoke from her nose. “Red dragons live for thousands of years. So every family is big, and complicated.” She stared out the window for a while. “We tend to stay alone.”

Jolly nodded her head vigorously. “Yes. As a rabbit person I have many family members. We sometimes don’t get along, but we always care about each other.”

Aki made a face. “I don’t deign to care about what happens with the family of anyone. It’s not my business.”

Jolly clapped his hands together. “You are powerful and wise. I do not understand your reasoning but I know you are much wiser than I.”

Aki wrinkled her nose. “Flattery won’t get you anywhere.”

Jolly shook his head. “I’m not trying to flatter you.”

Aki pulled her tobacco pipe out of her bag of holding and sparked it.

Jolly looked at the pipe with folded ears. “I have never seen such a thing.”

“It is a kind of weed grown by the halfling race.” Aki took a deep puff. “It is quite toothsome.”

Jolly’s ears tilted. “That does not look very appetizing.”

“You don’t smoke for flavor.” Aki puffed. “You smoke for the experience.” Aki took a bottle of fine wine from her bag of holding, as well as three wine glasses.

“If you are to travel with me,” Aki removed the wine’s cork carefully, as it was old, “You must get used to luxury.” She poured herself a glass. The carriage was bumpy, but Aki’s coordination was superb. The liquid barely moved at all in the glass.

“I would never think to drink such high quality wine.” Jolly shook his head.

Yeer nodded in agreement. “Please, do not waste such good drink on simple commoners such as us.”

Aki swirled her wine glass. “Luxury is meant to be experienced. And it is an experience best done with others.” She poured two glasses. “Drink.”

Both Jolly and Yeer took their glasses with careful motions. Yeer looked at her glass with a questioning expression on her face. “I am not good with wine, but is this from the Yelvar region of Corint?”

Aki raised an eyebrow. “Why yes it is. Are you familiar with that particular region?”

“My former master also enjoyed wine. I was tasked with collecting and organizing his wine cellar.”

Aki laughed, and took a drink. She lowered the glass. “You do know about wine! Do not be humble about your skills.”

Yeer bowed her head. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Good.” Aki finished her glass. She looked at the empty vessel for a few seconds before slipping it back into her bag of holding. The carriage came to Albern Valley and passed by endless fields of wheat, dotted by the occasional village. Eventually traffic built up. They traveled to the city of Albern, which rose out of the central plain with walls twenty meters high. The massive main gates were visible from two miles away.

They came to the city entrance. When it was their turn to go through the checkpoint, Aki looked at herself in her pocket mirror to make sure her affect was correct. Then she slipped it into her pocket. “As we practiced.”

The guard stopped the carriage. “Halt. Where are you from?”

“Farrow Dells.” Aki stepped out of the carriage. “Under authority of Mayor Thorn of the Special Economic Zone.”

The guard appeared surprised. “I have never heard of such a place. Isn’t Farrow Dells the location where the Great Red Dragon lives?”

“Yes. The Special Economic Zone has the backing of Akkandocastulcar, guardian of Farrow Dells.”

The guard scratched his head. “Well, I’ll be pipped. I’ll have to talk to my superior about what to do about this. Do you mind holding on in a side room while I do that?”

“If we must.” Aki waved the carriage into a small stall inside the gate.

They waited inside the small room for about half an hour. The door opened and a fat, burly man with a thick mustache stepped in. He spat. “Keep your slaves on a leash.”

Aki grinned, showing her teeth. “They aren’t slaves.”

The man laughed out loud. “What a find! You must be crazy. Farrow Dells? Hah. Like anyone could subdue the Great Red Dragon.”

Aki stood up, unleashing her entire aura. “Say that again.”

The man cowered. “Okay, okay. Please don’t kill me.”

Aki showed her teeth again. “Then don’t poke me.”

The man coughed, rubbing his mouth. “I have looked into the paperwork and there is no principality known as the Special Economic Zone in Farrow Dells.”

“We’re a new state.” Aki crossed her arms.

The man grimaced. “The King has not recognized you. If you continue to claim such nonsense as a new barony being opened in Farrow Dells, I will have to bring you to a higher authority.”

Aki grabbed the man and slammed him against the wall. “You will let us in, and you will give us the proper paperwork.”

“Bah.” The man collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily. “It’s your funeral.” He handed Aki three cards. “Take them. Go register yourselves at the adventurer’s guild. I’m not responsible for what the Duke will do to you. He’s been mad ever since his slaves were stolen, and is not in a forgiving mood.”

Aki showed her teeth. “Thank you, kind sir.” She waved to Jolly and Yeer. “Let’s blow this joint.”

They returned to their carriage and crossed the city, reaching the guild house in about another half hour. Aki kept watch to make sure no one was following them.

When they were at the entrance to the guild house, Aki slipped two aura reducing rings onto her fingers. Her aura changed to about that of a level twenty warrior adventurer.

She had been in Albern many times before. At one point she had considered leveling the place with dragonfire, but that was before she had matured. She had been a firebrand in those days, and smiled at the memory.

They entered the guild house. No one appeared to notice them enter—it was not uncommon for new adventurers to arrive in the city, looking for jobs.

Aki approached the counter. “Hello.”

The receptionist smiled. “My name is Eila. Welcome to the Albern adventurers’ office. How may I help you?”

“We’re looking to register as an adventuring party.” Aki handed Eila the three cards.

“Okay. Temporary adventurers’ visas. I can accept those.” Eila stamped them and filed them away in a drawer. “I will now cast the appraisal spell.” Eila held up her hand. “Isith lem soranil.” The paper underneath her hand glowed.

“You are currently at level twenty. You have been assigned the rank of C.”

Eila completed the appraisal for Jolly and Yeer as well. “Okay. You both are E rank.” She smiled. “Please, have a nice day, and ask me if you need any help with anything.”

Aki leaned onto the counter. “Hey. Do you know of any merchants who want to make a lot of money selling goods?”

Eila raised an eyebrow. “Where?”

“There’s a new city being built in Farrow Dells. A Special Economic Zone. No tariffs, no sales tax, minimal regulation.”

“That sounds wonderful.” Eila smiled sweetly. “And too good to be true. Try selling that line elsewhere.”

Aki sighed. “Your loss.”

A white-haired man with a large beard approached Aki. “You said something about a special economic zone?”

“The Special Economic Zone. It’s a city where commerce is not taxed, and where you can sell anything at any price. A land of promise for merchants.”

The man chuckled. “I’ll bite. Give me a map and I’ll be on my way.”

Aki handed the man a map.

The man waved as he walked away. “Thanks!”

Aki watched the man leave the guild house. “Well that was quick.”

Eila’s smile faltered. “You don’t appear very suspicious, but for him to take it at face value …”

“Well, despite however trustworthy you may consider me to be,” Aki shrugged, “There’s always people who chase after rainbows.”

Eila bowed. “Those are wise words.”

Aki motioned with her hand. “Come on, Jolly, Yeer. If we can do a big job we’ll be able to increase our renown easily.” She walked to the board and picked the biggest monster hunt she could find. “Here we are.”

“Ma’am.” Eila called from across the room. “That is an S class job. I don’t believe you are strong enough for it.”

The whole room looked at her. Aki smiled sweetly. “If we die, then so be it.” She shoved the paper into her bag of holding. “Come on, Jolly, Yeer. We’ll do some powerleveling before we try this out.”

“Powerleveling?” Yeer’s ears flapped.

“Yes. We need to raise your levels high enough so you don’t get one-hit KO’d by the Frost Dragon’s attacks.” Aki looked at the drawing on the paper. “Hey, that’s Drukharniumatita. I know that guy. He’s kind of an idiot but he’s super powerful.” Aki shrugged. “Well, I suppose I could give him a call and see why he has a hit out on him at the adventurer’s guild.” She waved at Jolly and Yeer. “By the end of the week you two will be equivalent to this place’s level A.”

They left the building and entered the streets. Aki led them out of the city and into the countryside. She took off both of her aura suppressing rings. “We’re going to do some ghoul calling.” She snapped her fingers and a bell appeared in her hand, which she rang with a flick of the wrist.

The world was blanketed in a thick fog. The sound of crunching feet resonated through the air. Yeer and Jolly held their weapons up, holding close to Aki.

Aki grinned, snapping her fingers again. “Go for it! Hit these boys for all they’re worth!”

Dozens of ghouls rose from the ground and delved out of the mist, hands held out in front of them.

Yeer yelled and charged the monsters.

“Yes, that’s it!” Aki clapped her hands, and then stomped her foot on the ground. A pillar of rock rose underneath her, giving her a view of everything around the fog. She watched as Yeer and Jolly struggled against the waves of ghouls.

“Yes, that’s it! That’s how you use your sword!”

Jolly was covered in light, indicating that he had leveled up. Soon after Yeer leveled up as well.

“We have plenty of time!” Aki placed a rock on the stone next to her. “We’re just getting started here!”

Yeer and Jolly fought hard for several hours. Aki dispersed the ghouls with a snap and jumped down from the tower.

[Diagnose?]

[Yes.]

[Yeer: LVL 14 Warrior.]

[Jolly: LVL 20 Sorcerer.]

Aki grinned. “You sure are leveling quick.”

Jolly panted as he held his hands on his knees. “We’re going to be doing this for another week?”

Aki slapped Jolly on the shoulder. “About right. By the time we’re done you’ll both be level fifty.”

Jolly groaned. “Oh, man.” He grimaced “Well, it beats being a slave.”

The Special Economic Zone Chapter 13: Switcharoo

 

Switcharoo

Rea stood in front of the temporary council in their open-air arena.

“Our food reserves are getting dangerously low. We won’t be able to harvest for another five months. We need to find ways to import more food.”

There was a commotion.

Thorn stood up. “What we need to do is spread the word that we have money and trade goods. If we get a few people, human or not, interested in selling their goods here, we won’t even have to try to procure food on our own.”

“That’s optimistic!” Pearl rose from his chair and slammed his fist. “That’s just what you think.”

Thorn shook his head. “How much food reserves do we have?”

“Enough for one more week.” Rea read off of a piece of paper.

“Then that’s good. I will send parties who will go into various human cities, posed as adventurers, and spread rumors about a new civilization in Farrow Dells.”

“Don’t you think someone else, someone less critical to the running of our city, should go instead?” Cass stood up, his arms crossed.

“I believe this is something that I should send Aki to do. I think she’s the best for the job.”

Rea sighed, sitting back down. “Election day is tomorrow. Everyone, be ready.”

There were a few more items on the docket, but eventually Thorn was able to return to Aki’s house and work on his pet project, the printing press.

Sally followed Thorn into the house as well. She looked at the unfinished printing press with awe.

“I don’t know how to read.” She hung her head. “I’m sorry.”

“We’ll have to set up a school system.” Thorn played with a bolt on the printing press. “One of the positions on the election docket is master of education. Whoever gets elected to that role will be the one to ask about that.”

Thorn spent the rest of the day working with Aki on building the printing press.

The next morning he got up early and headed to the town square. The main courthouse and administrative building had not yet been completed. Thorn watched as a trickle of people, and then eventually a flood, filed past the election box with their tickets. Each person put in a single ticket with their votes written on it. There were X positions to be filled. Two bodyguard demi-humans in full armor followed him wherever he went.

[Would you like to utilize the fantasy abstractor?]

Thorn was used to hearing that voice in his head by now.

[Yes.]

[There are X positions on the docket. Senators: 11. Members of the house: 9. Administrative duties: 4. Vice mayor: 1.]

Thorn sat down on a wooden chair and watched the process. By noon everyone had cast their vote.

The counting of ballots was done by Aki, Ron, and Rea, as the standing members of the Supreme Court. When they were done, they made the announcements. Every seat had been filled.

Aki approached Thorn, trailed by the person who had won the position of vice mayor. It was a bunny girl named Isabelle. She had brown fur with white spots and long whiskers. She held out her hand.

“I am happy to be able to work with you.”

Thorn shook her hand. “Do you have any previous experience in leadership?” He had been paying attention to the election, but her win was a surprise to him.

Isabelle nodded. “Yes, sir. I was the leader of my tribe before we were enslaved.”

Thorn nodded. “Good. I need to talk to you for a while to establish our policy.”

“If you wish.” Isabelle and Thorn entered the newly completed office wing of the main administrative building. He sat her down. Aki watched, standing behind her. The two demi-human guards stood by the doorway, holding their spears with sharp poise.

Thorn spent the next few hours reviewing his policy on everything he imagined would be important. When he was finished he stood up and shook hands with Isabelle. He left the office wing and returned to the half-done senate building. There, he stood up on the stage and presented Isabelle. He also greeted the new senators and members of the house, getting to know each of their names. Finally, he introduced himself to the four administration members: the education minister, the infrastructure minster, the policy minister, and the chief of police. Everyone seemed to be cordial when they interacted with him.

Thorn sat everyone down and stood on the stage. “Thank you for participating in this greatest of experiments.”

###

Aki stood beside Thorn, wondering what his purpose really was. As his first companion, the one who met him when he had first appeared in this world, she knew that she was the one who understood him most. And yet she didn’t understand him at all. Why had he created a government that was going to phase him out before long? Why did he insist on splitting his own powers instead of consolidating it?

Aki didn’t understand at all. And yet she knew that Thorn had the most interesting idea that had ever come out of humans: the idea that commerce should be unrestricted and without limitation.

Frankly, she smelled treasure. And dragons loved treasure.

When Thorn’s speech was done, Aki returned to her small temporary abode after making sure his guard consignment was properly organized. She put a kettle on the fire and sat down at her makeshift table. Eventually she would cart all of her valuables to the city, but she needed a good hiding spot before she would even consider moving her treasure. She was also very happy that Thorn had never once asked her for a loan of any kind.

That was one of the reasons she followed him. That, and the fact that he could uppercut her into the dream world if he wanted to.

The kettle whistled. Aki took it off and made herself some of her favorite tea. She examined the newly built printing press as she drank.

There was a knock at the door. Aki stood up and looked through the peephole. It was Rea.

Aki opened the door. Rea entered, brushing her feet on the welcome mat. Rea looked at the tea on the table and sniffed. “Do you have any of that Earl Grey left?”

“Of course I do.” One of Aki’s most treasured categories of treasure was rare teas. And rare teas were meant to be enjoyed. She poured a cup of Earl Grey for Rea. The two sat opposite each other, sipping their tea.

“I wonder when our first court case is going to happen.” Rea sipped.

“Not for some time. We still need to establish a minor court. We are the highest law in the land, after all.”

Rea chuckled. “Though it isn’t much of a land yet.” She put her teacup down. “I think Thorn may be serious about sending you on a mission.”

“You think so?” Aki put her cup down as well. “There is the food shortage. Do you think that’s what he expects me to fix?”

“He is very heavy on letting other people do the hard work.”

“I believe that it is better termed delegation and division of labor. Let people do what they’re best at.”

Rea shrugged. “Well.” She stood up. “It was nice having tea with you.”

“Goodbye.”

Rea left the house. Aki filled her teacup up with more tea. About ten minutes later there was another knock at the door. Aki opened it.

Thorn stood in the doorway.

“How can I help you?” Aki ushered Thorn inside.

Thorn sat, holding his hands in his lap. “I need you to help with the food problem. I believe that the best way to fix it would be to engage private enterprise.”

Aki pursed her lips. Thorn was always talking about private enterprise like it was some sacred cow. She did love treasure, but she was more of the type to take what she needed, when she needed it. However, Thorn’s methodology was an interesting one, and she wanted to know how it would all pan out.

“What do you expect me to do?”

“I’m gathering parties of adventurers.” Thorn cupped his chin in his hands. “I’m going to send them across the human realm and have them advocate for Farrow Dells and the Special Economic Zone by starting rumors. It will be a grassroots campaign.”

“You want to increase this country’s renown?” Aki frowned. “Wouldn’t the easiest way be to conquer and show our military might? You are powerful enough to level a city, after all.”

Thorn shook his head. “I want my city built on trade and commerce, not oppression and destruction. If I can get enough people interested in making money here, then we can solve our food problem and all of our other shortages.”

“Okay.” Aki sipped her tea. “I think I can manage that.”

“I’m sending you to Albern. You’ll be going with two demi-humans. They will be free, and you’ll make a point of that.”

“And? You want me to upend generations of prejudice against demi-humans just like that?”

“No. It’s going to be a tough road.” Thorn stood up and placed his hand on Aki’s shoulder. “And I think you can do it.”

Aki sighed. “Okay. I’ll try my best.”

Thorn nodded once. “I have other things to take care of. I’ll send your companions to meet you as soon as possible. Until then you’re free to do whatever you want.”

“About my position as a judge on this Supreme Court of yours.”

Thorn stopped. “Yes?”

“What, exactly, are my duties?”

“It will be your decision to interpret the law when there is a question regarding its implementation. Until we get such a question, you’ll be free to do other things.”

“So you’re going to let the lower level judges handle normal civil and criminal cases.”

“Exactly. I’ll put our city in your hands.” Thorn left the room and closed the door behind him.

Aki sipped her tea. Well, there wasn’t too much that could go wrong with this plan.

Ten minutes later there was another knock at the door. Aki stood up and opened it.

A bunny person and a fox person stood in the doorway. Both appeared extremely anxious, and Aki could smell their fear. She smiled disarmingly. “Come in. Have some tea.” She sat them down around her tea table. “What are your names?”

The male bunny person nodded his head. “My name is Jolly, ma’am.”

Aki replied in the demi-human trade language. “My name is Aki. I’m a red dragon, but don’t let that get to you.”

The fox person, a female with exceptionally long ears, bowed. “My name is Yeer.”

“Ah, that means “snowfall” in foxtongue.”

“Yes, it does.” Yeer bowed. “Thank you for taking us in.”

“What are your levels?” Aki had a diagnostic skill, but she didn’t deem it to be worth the effort.

“I’m a level six sorcerer.” Jolly bowed.

“I’m a level two warrior.” Yeer bowed.

“I’m a level one hundred and seventy magic beast.” Aki grinned, adding a bit of an edge to it.

Both Jolly and Yeer bowed repeatedly. “Yes, ma’am. Of course, ma’am.”

“What I say goes.” Aki continued to grin. “Get it?”

“Yes.” Jolly and Yeer nodded.

“Good.” Aki stood up. “We’re leaving tomorrow at dawn. Take care of whatever you have to, and meet me here an hour before the sun rises.” She shood them out of her house, and sat back down with her teacup.

The meeting had gone quite well. She had instilled a fear of her inside those two newborn adventurers. Now that they were part of her treasures, she would do whatever she could to maintain that. They were living beings, of course, and slavery was not allowed in the Special Economic Zone, but Aki knew how to keep people in reverence of herself. She smiled, and sipped her tea again.

Thorn. What a weirdo.

The Special Economic Zone Chapter 12: Over the Moon

 

Over the Moon

Thorn watched the city being built from his small but well-constructed mayoral house. Using his ability to create money from mana, he continued making loans to anyone who he saw fit. He knew that, eventually, the money would be coming from outside investment, but since the renown of the Special Economic Zone wasn’t high yet, there was no other source of income. Several times in the following week more demi-humans arrived at the town, growing it to a population of about three thousand. The first houses were beginning to be constructed. Trees were being felled, and farmland was being seeded.

The day before Thorn’s deadline regarding the cementing of the constitution, he held an open meeting with Rea, Ron, Aki, Cass, and Pitch. All twelve other dwarves sat at one end of the table.

“We will now begin the open forum regarding the wording of the Special Economic Zone constitution. Does anyone have anything to say before we begin deliberations?”

Pitch nodded. “Yes. I want to say that you’re the craziest human I’ve ever met, and I’ve met a lot of humans.”

Everyone else on the council nodded their heads.

Thorn looked around the council, and then at the crowd surrounding the makeshift building. “No one? No one has anything to say?”

There were a lot of head nods and glances.

“Come on, guys. This is supposed to be a public forum.”

Rea raised her hand. “Um, we’re willing to go with whatever you decree.”

Thorn sighed, rubbing his temples. “Well, that was not exactly unexpected. I’ll ask each of you one at a time then. Aki, what do you think?”

“I have a few questions about the rule zero amendment.”

“Shoot.”

“Why did you place it so high up?”

“Because I want this land to become a hub of trade. Also because no one in my world has ever tried this before.”

“So you’re using us as your experiment?”

Thorn thought for a moment. “Yes. Yes I am. But I promise that this experiment is thought out. Yes, yes! That’s the kind of question you should be asking!” Thorn clapped his hands.

Aki raised an eyebrow. “You actually enjoy people questioning your decisions?”

“Of course! That’s why I set up this whole event! That’s what separation of powers is all about!”

Several dwarves held their hands up. Thorn picked the one on the far left. “Yes. Ruby.”

“How did you choose the people on this council?”

Thorn thought for a minute. “I didn’t think much, to be honest. That’s not for me to decide. This council is makeshift. Eventually it will be replaced by a house and a senate, whose members are elected from the general public.”

“So you do not intend to retain this council in its current form.”

“No. I do not. I want to allow the people to choose who will make the laws they abide by.”

“You are a strange one.” Ruby appeared satisfied.

Thorn pointed at the next dwarf. “Pearl. What is your question?”

“Why are you insisting on paying the people who are working on this town?”

Thorn nodded. “I want to establish a method of operation. I believe that everyone should be compensated for their work in a way that they feel is fair.”

Pearl frowned. “I’ve heard that people are not distributing the loans you gave them equally among their workers.”

“Then so be it.” Thorn crossed his arms. “As long as they are not cheating anyone, then they can decide where their money goes.”

“Define cheating.”

“Cheating is lying about things. As long as the people with the money are transparent about where their money goes, they don’t need to be policed about how to use it.”

“And how will you gauge this transparency?”

“Oh, I have a lot of things in mind, but we’ll wait until we grow economically before I implement them. Accountants will be central to the function of this city and its government. I want to encourage laissez-faire capitalism, but discourage monopolization and obtuseness.”

“This seems like a lot of work. Why are you doing this?” Pearl scratched his beard.

“Because, honestly, I want to create a better world. And I think this is the best way I can do this.”

Everyone nodded. Thorn pointed at the third dwarf with a raised hand. “Quartz. What do you have to say?”

“Yes. I was wondering about your policy regarding human civilization.”

“My mission is to interact amicably with humanity. However, there are some things I will not tolerate. Slavery is the obvious one, but tyranny of any kind is a no go. I wish to change humans from the outside in and from the inside out. Their current society is brutal and backwards. I want to change that.”

Everyone clapped. Thorn waved his hand. “I want this town to stand as a bastion of civilization and equality. Everyone is equal under the law, but not everyone is equal in their talents. Let the talents go where they should.”

Aki raised her hand.

Thorn pointed. “Yes.”

“I have a question about monetary policy.”

“Go ahead.”

“How are you going to finance this government? I know you have a special place where you are acquiring your money, but won’t that eventually be insufficient?”

“I plan on sticking to bullion currency for as long as we remain a city-state. What I imagine is that we will solicit merchants and companies from the human realm who will infuse this city with money. We will be as lenient as possible with our taxes, taking only enough to fund our social infrastructure.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I mean police, courts, roads, bridges, and public works projects. Eventually we will also have to raise an army.”

Aki frowned. “This is all grand, but how will you implement this?”

“I will create an administration. Every good ruler needs advisors. That’s what the legislative branch is for. If someone is voted into a position of office, then I will listen to them.”

Aki sighed, rubbing her ears. “You certainly are implementing a complex system here.”

“That’s the point.” Thorn looked around the meeting. “Does anyone else have anything to say?”

Thorn spent the next three hours answering questions about the constitution and his plans for the city and its government. When he was done, it appeared to him that everyone was satisfied with his answers. The sun was just about to go down.

Thorn stepped down from his chair and walked to his small, temporary residence.

Aki waved at him from across the street. She was smiling. “Here.” Inside her half-finished house was a wine press.

“About patents.” She sat down on a wooden chair. “I didn’t want to ask about this in particular because I wanted to keep it secret. But are you really going to legally protect people’s inventions?”

“Yes.” Thorn examined the press. “Patents are the best way to encourage scientific and social development.”

“You went over how you were going to enforce them, but I get the feeling you’re being too optimistic in regard to humans.”

“Yeah. It’s nice rhetoric. I really don’t know exactly how to implement it. It’s a goal that many people, lots of skilled negotiators, will have to handle.”

“So you realize that putting all this on yourself is too much for a single person, no matter how wise.”

“Exactly.” Thorn finished inspecting the machine. “I’m going to need a bodyguard service. At the moment I don’t believe anyone here is after my life, but I will need it in the future. I want you to take charge of that.”

Aki snorted smoke. “You really trust me that much?”

Thorn shrugged. “You want to see what happens with this experiment as much as I do, right?”

“Only because I smell a pile of treasure.”

Thorn smiled. “And there is no better motivation in the world.”

Aki grinned. “Oh, you get dragons.”

Thorn laughed. “Wanting wealth is not complicated at all.”

Aki’s grin softened. “I know what you’re doing. You’re playing off of humanoid beings’ lust for wealth and treasure in order to build a prosperous society.”

“Right. There was a writer named Ayn Rand in my old world who theorized about a society like this. I’m just happy that I’m the one who gets to see it become real.”

Aki chuckled. “You seem like the real deal to me.”

[Would you like to conjure a set of movable type? It will cost .02% of your mana.]

[Yes.]

A set of movable type appeared on the table. Thorn handed a piece to Aki. “Do you think you can engineer this machine to accept these and create something that can print? You have the basic idea, right?”

Aki nodded, taking the type piece in her hand. “I’ll do my best.”

Thorn yawned.

Aki smiled a bit. “It’s time for bed. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Thorn left the house and walked down the street to his own residence. All of a sudden he got the serious feeling that he was in danger. He twisted his body and felt a dart slip by his neck. He created a ball of magic as bright as an Arclight and cast it in the direction the missile had come from. He saw a shadow in between two buildings, which then leaped into the air and shot away into the distance. He lowered his light.

People from all around were poking their heads out of their tents and houses. Thorn extinguished the light. “It’s all okay.” He rubbed his neck.

Aki came out of her house and approached Thorn. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I sensed their presence outside but thought it was nothing.”

Thorn shook his head. “This just proves the fact that I need some bodyguards.”

Aki stamped her foot. “From now on, you are not allowed to go anywhere without an escort.”

Several dwarves and members of Rea’s pack were pushing back the crowd that formed. Thorn tried his best to calm himself down.

Aki and Rea started talking. They seemed to come to a conclusion and approached Thorn.

“Aki and I will be with you at all times from now on.” Rea stamped her foot. “You will not have a say in this. We will be your protectors until we can find some suitable warriors.”

Thorn took a deep breath. “Okay. Yes, I agree.”

“You’re not going to be paranoid about this, are you?”

Thorn shook his head. “No. I’ll keep going as I have. Now that I know someone is after me, I’ll be a lot more careful, but I still have a lot to do before I can call it quits.”

Aki crossed her arms. “Okay. I’ll start the shift today. I’ll be within earshot of you.” She motioned to Rea. “You can sleep tonight, but we have a schedule to keep now.”

Rea nodded, and bowed. The crowd was made to disperse. Thorn sat down on the only chair in his small mayoral abode.

“Yeah.” He sighed. “I suppose I may have been a little bit too optimistic.”

 

The Special Economic Zone Chapter 11: We're Just Getting Started

 

We’re Just Getting Started

“Aki. Ron. Rea.” Thorn held his hands behind his back. “I have gathered you here because you will be the founding members of the Special Economic Zone Supreme Court.”

Ron shook his head. “I’m a crook. All I do is crime. And you want me to be a judge?”

“For life.” Thorn pointed at Ron. “You’ve got more knowledge of human depravity than any person I know. You’d be great as a balancing factor on the Supreme Court.”

“What, exactly, does the Supreme Court do?” Ron squinted.

“They take the laws that are laid down by the constitution and the legislative offices and interpret them. For now, since we’re only a small town, you’re going to be regular judges.”

“Okay.” Aki crossed her arms. “I think I get it. But are you okay, putting an immortal dragon in an office like this?”

“Of course. Your immortality is a boon that we couldn’t get back in my home. Your wisdom is unmatched, as are yours, Rea.”

Rea bowed. “I will take on this office with honor.”

Aki made a noise. “Okay. Since Rea’s in on this, I’ll be in on it too.”

“Eventually I’ll be expanding the Supreme Court to contain seven members. But since we have less than a thousand citizens here at the moment, I’ll leave it as three.”

Aki pursed her lips. “What role will you play in the new government?”

“I will be the mayor of this town, and eventually the president. For the next four years I’ll be staying in office under foundational protocol. But after that I’ll have to be elected.”

“You’re giving up power over your own creation?” Ron’s face was incredulous. “You were the one who built this town.”

“I know. But I also know that some day I will die.”

Aki shook her head. “Do you not realize? You’re the most immortal human I’ve ever met. I wouldn’t be surprised if you lived a thousand years.”

Thorn blinked a few times. Then he shook his head. “I couldn’t. Not only is my immortality not completely certain, but I don’t know if I’ll die from some other means before I reach my natural age.” Thorn sat down. “Here. Here are copies of the constitution and bill of rights. I added another amendment while thinking about it. Amendment zero.”

“The right to personal property, industriousness, and honest pursuit of profit shall not be infringed?” Aki raised an eyebrow. “Now why would you put that as one of your government’s fundamental laws?”

“This is an experiment.” Thorn stood up. “I do not know if it will work or fail, but I am in a position that supremely suits this sort of thing. No one in my home world ever had a chance like this one. Now read those documents. You will need to understand them inside and out. For the next two weeks I will leave the bill of rights open to criticism. Anyone and everyone can discuss it. When that deadline happens, the bill will be locked unless the senate and house votes for it to be changed.”

Aki snorted smoke from her nostrils. “You’re mad.”

“Yeah, I get that a lot here.”

Aki smiled. “But I love it. A social experiment the likes of which the world has never known.”

Thorn folded up his copy of the constitution. “You guys can debate what, exactly, the wording should be on these. You’re going to be the experts, after all. If all is successful, I don’t want people two hundred years down the line questioning what we wrote.”

“I’ll still be alive by then.”

Thorn shrugged. “Yeah, I guess. But before you accept this office, know that it precludes you from joining any of the other branches. So you’ll never be president or a senator.”

The three new judges looked at each other. Ron spoke first. “I will stake my life on my job.”

Aki nodded. “I will accept. I have no interest in ruling, but as a dragon I am very interested in law.”

Rea howled. “Yes! Yes!”

Thorn clapped his hands together. “Great. We will host a ceremony a few days from now.”

Thorn then went to the middle of the burgeoning town square and tacked the full constitution and bill of rights to the brand new town billboard. About a hundred demi-humans and dwarves surrounded the billboard.

Thorn cleared his throat. “I will now officially found the city state known as the Special Economic Zone. I know you have all been oppressed by humanity at one point or another, but I trust that our relationship with them will be cordial, as well as punitive. We cannot forget what slavery and warfare has done to us, but we can create a peaceful realm that is not afraid to show its teeth. This new realm will have three foundational aspects: one: freedom of speech. Anyone can say anything to anyone without recompense, exept when these words cause devious harm. As an addendum to this, religion of any kind and the state will be separated by law. Second: all sentient beings have rights that shall not be infringed. No matter your appearance or heritage, if you can speak a language—no matter what it is—you have the same rights as every other sentient being. And third: the pursuit of industriousness, trade, personal property, and pursuit of wealth through honest means will not be infringed.” Thorn bowed. “I hope to be your mayor for the next four years. If you wish to know more about our new form of government, then please wait until we distribute pamphlets containing everything you need to know. Until then, I will post the constitution in its entirety to the town billboard. Thank you.” Thorn bowed again.

The whole town erupted into cheers. “Yes! Thorn! Mayor Thorn!”

“As an extension of point two, I am now hereby abolishing slavery of any kind. If a human with slaves wishes to live in our society, then they must free them, without compensation. Slavery is an abomination and should not be allowed anywhere within civilized society.”

The cheers of the townsfolk echoed through the valley. Thorn bowed for a third time, and then stepped off of the stage. He motioned to Aki.

“Do you have something to say?”

Aki nodded, stepping up to the stage. “I know I am a fearsome dragon, but even a dragon as old as I am aware of the fact that this experiment has the potential to become something amazing. Until time we are able to produce a proper military, I will lend all of my draconic powers to defending this realm.” Aki bowed, and then stepped down.

Thorn stepped back up to the stage. “In two weeks we will begin our election cycle for the legislative branches of our small city state. In the meantime, I will gather talent and decide exactly how power should be shared.” Thorn stepped down.

He town cheered, again. After a few minutes, they dispersed, going back to their jobs.

Aki slapped Thorn on the back. “You are the most interesting human I’ve ever met. I can’t wait to see what you are able to come up with.”

“About that. I need to acquire a winepress.”

Aki tilted her head. “For what? There are no vineyards here. At least not yet.”

Thorn grinned. “I’m going to produce a printing press.”

“Now what kind of a machine is that?”

Thorn looked up at the sky. “You know how copying books is hard, grueling work, right?”

“Right. I own quite a few books in my treasure collection.”

“I suppose you would have one. You’re a dragon, after all.” Thorn cleared his throat. “Well, anyways. What I’m planning on doing is producing a machine called a printing press with movable type.”

“Explain.”

“What you do is you arrange small metal letters to recreate a page in a book and then arrange them on the surface of the press. Then you ink the letters and press a piece of paper. That way, you can produce hundreds of pages of paper from a single arrangement of letters, thus greatly speeding up the process of copying books.”

“You’re a genius!”

Thorn shook his head. “No. I’m not. This is an old idea in the world I come from.”

“About that world. Where is it?”

Thorn pointed at the sky. “Across the phlogiston. In another dimension entirely.”

“So that’s why you’re so strange.” Aki sighed. “Well, I’d better get to studying that constitution of yours.”

Ron had left a few minutes earlier, leaving Thorn with Rea.

Rea looked at Thorn. “I have not yet thanked you for saving my pack.”

Thorn put his hands in his pocket. “I couldn’t stand for the condition I saw them in.” He shrugged. “I’m going to go meet with Pitch. He’s a chemist, and I think he can help me.”

Rea nodded. “Can I come with you? I know nothing about alchemy, but I am interested.”

Thorn caught sight of Sally, poking her head around the foundation of a building.

“You can come too if you want.”

Sally nodded and ran up beside Thorn.

Thorn, Rea, and Sally found Pitch working on the second floor of a building near the village edge. Thorn called out for him.

“What’s up, boss?” Pitch rubbed the dirt off his hands.

“I need formaldehyde and phenol.” Since Dwarvish had words for the two, Thorn knew Pitch understood him.

“For what?” Pitch rubbed his dirty neck. “The reaction between the two produces a spongy mess that is brittle and useless.”

“That’s a precursor to the plastic that I was talking about.”

“Really?”

“Yes. If you create the right structure to modulate the reaction, you can create a substance known as Bakelite.”

“Bakelite?”

Thorn had used the English word, even though he was speaking Dwarvish. “Right. It’s a simple plastic.” Thorn shook his head. “You dwarves are going to have to figure it out, but the basic process is that you control the reaction between formaldyhyde and phenol with a catalyst. I’m sorry that I don’t know more than that, but I’m not a specialist in the subject.”

Pitch rubbed his hands together. “Okay. I’ll go of what you already know. We can figure this out once we get our lab completed.”

“Is that what this building is?”

“Right.” Pitch pointed to the building’s second floor. “This is a science lab.”

“That’s good. I must ask. Who is getting paid here?”

Pitch frowned. “I never really asked. At this point, everyone seems happy to just do their job.”

Thorn shook his head. “No good. At some point that willingness to work for the good of the town will dissipate. We need to figure out a way to pay people for working.”

“So what are you suggesting?”

“I have a theory about money. With my power, Pockets of God, I may be able to do something that no one has ever done before: create a hybrid fiat/commodity currency.”

“I don’t understand those terms.”

Thorn shook his head. “Pay your workers. If you need a loan, well …” Thorn sighed. “I’ll have to figure that out as well.” He conjured ten gold coins worth of silver coins. “Consider this a loan from the government.” Thorn motioned to a table that was sitting underneath the building. He conjured some paper and a pen and started writing.

“I’m no good with accounting, so we’re going to need to hire some administrative help. But until that happens, I’ll consider this contract as the marker of the Special Economic Zone’s first government loan.”

“What is the interest rate you’ll charge?” Pitch leaned forward.

“Two percent.”

“Two!” Pitch raised an eyebrow. “That’s low. Very low. Dwarven bankers usually charge around fifteen percent.”

“Low interest rates encourage economic activity. With my ability to conjure large amounts of commodity money, I will become the singular central bank.”

“Central bank? I don’t understand.”

Thorn shook his head. “Neither do I. But I will eventually figure it out. Now sign here, here, and here.”

Pitch signed. “Okay. So you want me to use this money to pay my workers?” Pitch didn’t seem to keen on the idea.

“No. Do whatever you want with it.”

“Whatever?”

“Yes. If your workers are willing to put in effort without pay, then so be it, as long as they are not being coerced. But I think you’ll find a significant difference in the productivity of someone who knows they’re getting paid.”

Pitch nodded. “Okay.”

Thorn looked at the research center. “Do you have a business model yet?”

“Business …” Pitch shook his head. “I was always counting on funding from …”

Thorn winked. “While I won’t say that I’ll refrain from subsidizing your work, you need to find a way to earn money if you want to sustain yourself.”

“Braid Kul.” Pitch cursed. “This is such a strange way to behave.”

Thorn laughed. “We’re just getting started.”

 

The Special Economic Zone Chapter 10: Bill of Rights

 

Bill of Rights

The flying carriages lifted over the mountain, over the siege surrounding it. Cass made a crude dwarven gesture at the soldiers down below as the carriages passed. They headed for the King’s Forest, which was several miles south of Dalmor.

When they reached the forest, the carriages touched down. Thorn saw Galena there, along with Sally and six demi-humans. He stepped out of the carriage.

“Galena! Sally!”

Sally rushed over and hugged Thorn. “You came back.”

Thorn pated Sally on the head. “I told you I would.” He looked at Galena. “Is this everyone?”

Galena looked at the carriages and whistled. “They pulled out all the stops. These are type three Dakkos carriages.”

Cass stepped out of a carriage. “King Dwargon has decided that Thorn is an asset to the Lonely Mountain. We’re now headed to Farrow Dells to start a new community.”

Galena clapped his hands together. “Good! That’s exactly what I was thinking. You don’t mind giving me a ride, do you?”

“Sure.” Cass shook Galena’s hand. “We have plenty of room.”

Five minutes later they were back in the sky. They flew over several human settlements, but they were too high up for them to do anything. They flew over the mountain range between Farrow Dells and the Great Plains. By the end of the day they had reached their destination. The carriages landed in the town’s clearing.

“Oh, wow.” Cass stepped out of the carriage. “This place is primitive.”

“That’s what I was hoping to change.” Thorn stepped out behind Cass.

Cass cracked his knuckles. “I hope you lot are hard working.” He addressed the gathered demi-humans. “We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us.”

Cass drew out a plan for the city center on a piece of parchment he had brought with him. Several of the dwarven architects put together blueprints for a number of buildings. Other dwarves led the demi-humans in foresting efforts.

Several days passed, and the buildings’ foundations were now visible.

“We are going to need a large amount of stone.” Cass sat underneath a makeshift tent, sitting across from Thorn. “The stone of the mountains near here should suffice. What do you know about quarrying?”

“You’re the dwarf.”

Cass rubbed his beard. “Hm. Well then. We’ll keep working to find a good quarry location.”

More days passed. About a week after construction started, a large number of demi-humans arrived from all across the continent. Thorn gave each and every one of them a name. They were put to work.

A clearing near the edge of the Dells was created, where terraced farms were placed. Since it was planting season, the fields were soon sown with corn, wheat, and potatoes.

During all this, Thorn remained in his makeshift mayor’s house, drawing up everything he knew about modern technology. He also used his Pockets of God ability to create objects and tools that the city needed.

He soon found that his detailed knowledge of modern society was woefully shallow. He knew about things like polymerization and the Bessemer process, but he had no idea how to implement any of it.

He decided that the first thing he would try to do would be to create paper.

He met with Cass on one afternoon, when the sun was almost setting.

“Okay.” Thorn handed Cass a piece of parchment. “You know how parchment is hard to source, right?”

“I do.” Cass nodded.

“What would you do if there was a cheap, easy, and comparable product?”

Cass tilted his head. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking this.”

[Would you like to conjure a ream of printer paper? Doing so will consume 0.0003% of your remaining mana.]

{Yes.}

A ream of paper appeared on the table in a flash of light.

“Now what is this?” Cass picked up a sheet of paper. “It’s light, and it’s a lot rougher than parchment.”

“It’s called paper.” Thorn stacked several more reams on the pile. “It’s made from wood pulp. I’m not entirely sure how to create it using non-magical processes, but I certainly can try.”

Cass laughed. “Okay. You got me there. We can try to recreate this using technology available to us.”

“I also want to procure a wine press.”

“Can’t you just summon one?”

Thorn shook his head. “It’s too big and complex.”

“So your power does have limits.” Cass rubbed his beard.

“Yes.” Thorn sighed. “I have to understand something intuitively in order to create it using this power. Things like gold pieces and simple potions are easy to understand. But unless I were to take apart a wine press and put it back together, I wouldn’t be able to create one.”

Cass bobbed his head. “Okay. I get you. We’ll add this to our list of things to do.”

“I know I’ve put a lot on you.” Thorn ran his hand through his hair.

“That’s what we came here to do.” Cass smiled. “You aren’t putting us through anything we don’t want to do.”

Thorn looked out the window at the buildings that were coming up around him. “It’s a good thing that there are beings out there who appreciate freedom.”

Cass folded his hands and leaned forward. “We need to talk about something.”

“Yes?”

Cass looked to the left and then to the right. “Right now, there aren’t very many people here, and most of them are indebted to you. However, as this town grows, it will be harder and harder to organize without a central government.”

Thorn pulled out a piece of paper he had been working on for the past week. “This is our constitution.”

Cass tilted his head. “Eh? What’s that?”

“It’s a piece of paper that tells the world what our government will be.”

Cass pursed his lips. “Explain.”

“First off. The government of this town will be considered a city-state until we expand our borders. We will have three branches of government: legislative, executive, and judicial. The legislation will be comprised of a number of representatives relative to the number of species within the nation. Each representative will be elected for a four-year term by the people who are affected by their choices.”

“Elections?” Cass grimaced. “Why would you ever want to give up power?”

“That’s the thing. I can’t trust even myself with too much power. Let me continue explaining.” Thorn ran his finger along the document in front of him. “I will be the mayor of this town for the next four years, but after that I am going to have to be elected.”

“You certainly are a weird one.”

“I’m not the one who came up with these ideas. Anyways, the judicial system will be comprised of seven supreme court justices. However, as our population is low, we will start with three. I will appoint these three judges. They will serve for life.”

“Okay.” Cass rubbed his hands together. “I’m starting to get it. You’re separating powers, aren’t you?”

“I’m glad you picked up on it so fast.” Thorn took out his bill of rights. “First and foremost, amendment one of the bill of rights states that we will have free speech. A person cannot be punished for anything that comes out of their mouths.”

Cass’s eyes widened. “Anything? Anything at all?”

“Minus a few heinous crimes that I will deal with later.” Thorn pointed to amendment two. “The right to bear arms will not be infringed.”

Cass’s eyes widened even more. “You’re absolutely crazy.”

“We’re just getting started.” Thorn pointed to the third right. “The government will not be able to house soldiers in civilian homes.”

Cass raised an eyebrow. “Really. That’s a big departure from what other humans do.”

“It’s a fundamental piece of the government I want to create.”

Cass rubbed his beard. “Won’t that make it much more difficult to host an army?”

“Yes. But I want, first and foremost, for the rights of the people to be respected.”

Cass chuckled. “Go on.”

“Fourth. It is unlawful to search property or seize objects without a warrant.”

“You’re a nutcase.” Cass shook his head. “There’s no way a government can function like that!”

“Just wait. Number five: trial by jury of peers. Every conviction needs to be ratified by a jury of twelve peers. No person will be tried for the same thing twice. And, we can’t confiscate property without rendering compensation.”

Cass laughed. “Oh, god of stone! You’re really going through with this?”

“Amendments six through nine deal with trials and the court system. I’ll expound on them when we get one set up, which won’t be for a while.” Thorn passed Cass a copy of everything. “Read up on this when you get the chance.”

Cass took the paper and read through it. “Okay. I think I get it.”

“Exactly. Tenth: the government can only act upon the powers that it is given by this document.”

“So you’re restricting your own power. Why?”

“Because I want Farrow Dells to become a nation of the people, for the people, and by the people.”

“You’re mad.”

Thorn chuckled. “We’re only halfway there. Amendment eleven eliminates the state from pursuing legal action with other sovereign entities. Twelve deals with how the president will be elected. Now here’s the bomb.”

“I read it.” Cass grinned. “No slaves.”

“Nope. No slaves. Ever.”

Cass nodded. “I understand completely.”

“Fourteen: all rights of people will be retained. You can read the exact wording in your copy. Fifteen: Everyone can vote. If they are an adult, then no matter the gender, race, or beliefs, they can vote.”

Cass nodded. “Hm. That’s an interesting system there. What are you going to do if they vote for something you’re against?”

“Then the people have had their say.” Thorn flipped his paper. “Yes, we are going to institute a tax system. We’ll talk about implementing that much later, once we have hired a number of accountants. Also, we’re going to have to figure out exactly how to divide the senate and the house among our population.” Thorn flipped his papers again. “And finally, the last one worth mentioning in a non-technical context: women will also have the vote.”

“So you meant everyone when you said everyone could vote.”

“Exactly.” Thorn folded up his papers. “You can make copies of that document. Eventually I will speed up that process with a printing press, but for now get at least ten copies of this document circulating.”

“Okay.” Cass looked over the papers again. “This is revolutionary. No one has ever formed a government like this.”

“Exactly.” Thorn nodded. “That’s why I’m doing it.”

“You even left a clause for yourself to be voted out of power.”

“Yes. I don’t know how long my lifespan here will be, but I do know eventually that I’ll be gone. I need to set up a good system for this place to flourish even a hundred years after my death.”

“You’re a long-term thinker, then.”

“Exactly.”

Cass seemed to think for a minute. “What do you want to call this new nation of yours?”

“The Special Economic Zone.” Thorn slid his papers into his bag of holding. “I know it’s a bit of a mouthful, but it’s supposed to symbolize our commitment to staying true to our morals.”

“The …” Cass hmphed. “I know exactly what that implies. You’re going to create a safe haven.”

“Yes. I’m going to create a nation where economics will be easy to pursue. I want to put together the greatest social and economic experiment this world has ever seen. With minimal taxes, minimal regulation, and maximum chance for profit, who knows what will be built?”

“You’re a libertarian, then.”

“I didn’t know Dwarvish had a word for that.”

Cass chuckled. “There are a lot of things you don’t know.” He overlooked the city, which was mostly foundations at the moment. “I can’t wait to see how you do.”

 

The Special Economic Zone Chapter 9: Wings of Freedom

 

Wings of Freedom

“One silver piece per pair.” Cass leaned forward. “At that price we’ll sell the most without undercutting our own business.”

Bismuth crossed his arms. “Other companies would probably try to fight you for the recipe for this object. It will be hard keeping it secret.”

“Well, we won’t have to worry about that.” Cass pointed to Thorn. “He conjures them using magic.”

Thorn held out his hand and conjured a pair of earplugs.

Cass took them and held them out to Bismuth. Bismuth took them and examined them. “How many can he produce daily?”

“Hundreds.” Cass grinned. “Do you realize how big of a business opportunity this is?”

“Sr Thorn only arrived at the Lonely Mountain this morning. How do you know he’s not plotting something nefarious?”

Cass shook his head. “I have a good eye for people. I can tell when someone is being dishonest.”

“If it makes you feel any better,” Thorn tried smiling, “I’m not technically affiliated with the Empire or the King.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Bismuth narrowed his eyes. “That’s what any spy would say.”

Thorn sighed. “Look. I don’t know what will convince you, but I will assert again that I mean you dwarves no harm. I’m actually looking to hire a couple of smiths and architects to support my new community in Farrow Dells.”

“Farrow Dells? The home of the Grand Red Dragon?” Bismuth whistled. “How did you manage that?”

“I made friends with the dragon.” Thorn shrugged. “She’s actually quite nice.”

“Now that’s a strange thing.” Bismuth held up his hands. “Well, we’re here to talk business. Let’s get started.” Bismuth held up two fingers. “I’d like to join you.”

“First I have to let you know that I’m going to be leaving soon, hopefully with dwarves for my town.” Thorn folded his hands. “But if we can establish a trade route with Farrow Dells, then you would still have access to my earplugs after I’m gone.”

“I’ll talk to the guild master about that. Farrow Dells is quite some distance away, but it’s not like we haven’t tried trading with places that were farther.” Bismuth ran his fingers through his beard. “About me joining you. How are we going to split the profits?”

Cass rubbed his hands together. “We were planning on buying each pair of earplugs from Thorn for seven copper coins.”

Thorn nodded. “That sounds reasonable.”

Bismuth nodded knowingly. “Good. It always pleases me to see an honest deal.” He tapped his foot on the ground. “How many can you create today? I’d like to stockpile them before we start our venture, since you’re leaving quite soon.”

Thorn nodded. “Can we do it here?”

Bismuth seemed to think for a minute. Then he stood up and carried an empty crate from a corner and dropped it onto the stone table. “Fill this crate up.”

[Would you like to conjure 2000 pairs of foam earplugs? Doing so will cost 67.4% of your remaining magic power.]

[Yes..]

A gigantic pile of foam earplugs materialized inside of the crate. Bismuth whistled. “That is an amazing ability you have there.”

Thorn shrugged. “I was gifted the ability by a deity.”

Bismuth chuckled. “And you can create this much every single day?”

“Is that what mana does?” Thorn frowned. “I’m not very familiar with how magic works in this world.”

“Mana replenishes after a long rest.” Bismuth nodded. “If you go to sleep for at least eight hours, your mana will be completely replenished for the day.”

“So that’s how it works.”

Bismuth stood up, clapping his hands. “Okay. I’ll go bring out the payment for these goods. Wait here.” He left the room.

Cass picked up a handful of the plugs. “They’re so squishy. The technology required to make these must be very advanced.”

“They’re actually created from a preparation of crude oil.” In Dwarvish, there was a special word for “crude oil” that had a lot of innuendo.

Cass chuckled. “Well then. That’s a nice pun. But be serious.”

“No, I’m totally serious.”

Cass’s expression changed. “Really?” He tilted his head. “This is made from -crude oil-?”

“Yes.” Thorn finally got the joke. “Okay, yeah, that’s a bad pun. But yeah. Crude oil is made of hydrocarbons of different lengths, and when processed correctly can make an organic material with the same fundamental structure as wood.”

Cass nodded his head in understanding. While the Dwarven language was not very good at explaining some things, one thing it did have was a robust chemical vocabulary. Cass rubbed his beard. “Pitchblende here is a chemist.”

Pitch nodded. “Yes. I study both alchemy and chemistry.” He picked up a pair of the plugs. “Do you mind if I study these in depth?”

“Sure.”

Pitch squished the objects in his palm. Then he held his hand over them. “Marit lage sum.” A bright light surrounded the plugs. Pitch rubbed his beard. “It appears to be mostly hydrocarbons.”

“It’s the same structure, technically, as cellulose.” Thorn picked up a pair of earplugs. “If you want, while we wait for King Dwargon to make a decision, I can teach you about the properties of crude oil.”

“That would be magnificent.” Pitch grinned.

“Right.”

At that moment the door to the room opened and Bismuth returned with a large bag of gold coins. “I’ve counted out two thousand plugs’ worth.”

Thorn knew that counting the money in front of his business partners was a faux pas in dwarven culture. Instead he slipped it into his bag of holding.

Bismuth looked at Cass and Pitch, rubbing his hands together. They all nodded. Bismuth placed all of the earplugs inside of his bag of holding. He shook hands with Thorn.

“If you want, we can head to a pub and do some drinking.” Cass patted his rather large belly.

“Sure.” Thorn had never been much of a drinker, but he was in a dwarven city, and saying no to a drink was a huge no-no in dwarven culture.

Cass, Pitch, Bismuth, and Thorn went to the nearest pub. It was filled with frolicking dwarves.

Thorn looked at all the beer being consumed. “It’s like there isn’t any siege at all.”

Bismuth laughed. “If dwarves don’t drink, they don’t live.” He held up four fingers. “Four pints!”

Two minutes later four large mugs of beer were placed on the table. Cass, Bismuth, and Pitch held a toast, and then started drinking.

Thorn looked at the questionably purple liquid in his mug. “What kind of beer is this?”

“Why, it’s plump helmet beer. The best in the mountain.” Bismuth took a huge draught.

“So it’s made with mushrooms?”

“Exactly. What, do you humans not enjoy the magic of mushrooms?” Bismuth wiped the foam from his beard. “Anyways. I’d like to hear more about this—” He leaned forward, “Crude oil stuff.”

“Right.” Thorn took a tentative sip of his beer. “So crude oil—”

“Don’t say it so loud!”

Thorn nodded. “So petroleum in its unrefined state is formed of many different hydrocarbons of different length. Each one has a usage that is different. What you need to do is distill the different sized hydrocarbons and extract them as separate products. Some of these hydrocarbons, when mixed with catalyst, will form a solid known as plastic.” The Dwarven language had no word for plastic, so Thorn borrowed the root from a Dwarvish word that meant “slick.”

“Hm.” Pitch played with his beard. “Do you think you would be able to set up a refining process here in the Lonely Mountain?”

“I’m sorry. That job was left to specialists in my country. I only know the broad strokes.”

“Where exactly did you learn this stuff?” Bismuth kept his eyes on Thorn.

“I can’t really tell you at this point.” Thorn shook his head. “It’s not something that you would understand.”

Bismuth sighed. “Well, if you’d like to keep it a secret, then I won’t pry. Everyone has things they don’t want to tell.” He took a long draught of his beer.

Thorn also drank. When he was done with his pint, he slammed the mug down on the table.

“Aw, man.” He hiccupped. “I’ve never had a girlfriend before. Never!”

Bismuth chuckled. “The human can’t handle his drink.”

Pitch clanged mugs with Cass. “He’s not a dwarf, that’s for sure.”

Thorn’s whole world blurred.

He woke up with a terrible headache inside of an empty bedroom. He sat up. Since the dwarven city of the Lonely Mountain was completely inside the mountain itself, Thorn had no idea of what time it was outside. The constant orange glow of the street lamps hadn’t changed.

“Bleh.” He rubbed his temples. “How much did I drink last night?”

There was a knock at the door.

“Come in.” Thorn got off the bed and stood up.

The door opened and Cass stepped in. “King Dwargon has decided your case. You can come with me.”

Thorn stretched, his head still pounding. “You guys don’t get hangovers?”

Cass chuckled. “I’ve heard rumors about what happens when humans drink, but I’ve never seen it happen before.”

“So you guys don’t?”

“Never.” Cass shrugged. “You need to look presentable. Use your magic pocket skill and put on some formal clothing.”

[Would you like to conjure a bespoke tailored suit? Doing so will consume 0.5% of your remaining mana.]

[Yes.]

A neatly folded tailored suit appeared in Thorn’s hand. It took him ten minutes to put on When he was done he looked at himself in the mirror.

Cass sniffed. “Humans sure have strange tastes in formal clothing.”

“Is this no good?”

Cass shook his head. “No. The King is tolerant of other cultures and customs.”

“Okay.” Thorn straightened his tie. “Let’s go.”

Cass led Thorn through the city until they came to the gigantic throne room gates. Thorn was as impressed with them as the first time he saw them.

They opened with regal slowness. Thorn stepped through the entrance chamber and into the throne room.

King Dwargon was sitting on the throne, one hand supporting his chin.

“Thorn Bradly. I have reviewed your case, and have decided that your cause is worthy. You have shown shrewd business sense and incredible power as an individual, and I believe the kingdom of the Lonely Mountain would benefit to have an ally such as you. You may take six architects and six blacksmiths with you, chosen from the best our people have to offer.” Dwargon picked up a hammer from beside the throne and hit a bell with it. The sound was long, and clear. “You may leave.”

Cass led Thorn out of the room. “Pitch and I volunteered to go with you.” He turned to look at Thorn. “We want to know more about you, and we also want to know what happens to the town you are building.”

Thorn smiled. “Thanks.”

“I’ve been told that we’ll be on our way after we collect everyone.”

“Good.” Thorn stepped out of the throne room. Twelve dwarves, plus Pitch, were standing outside, with carriages.

“How are we going to break the siege?” Thorn frowned when he saw the carriages.

Cass grinned devilishly. “You underestimate the ingenuity of the dwarves.”

“I can’t wait to see this.” Thorn surveyed the assembled dwarves. “Okay. Let’s go. Before we head to Farrow Dells, there are some people I’d like to pick up in the king’s forest.”

“Of course.” Cass stepped into one of the carriages. “Are we ready to go?”

The dwarves split and assumed their positions. After traveling through large tunnels, the carriages came to a single large room with a circular indentation.

“Here we go!” Cass yelled as the carriages sprouted cloth wings. They rose, wings flapping, and the roof opened up above them. “Tallyho!” They took off.