Primer: Economics of The Market

Replicator technology acquired from the Mekani eliminated capitalism overnight. With people capable of conjuring most things out of pure energy, and with the bottleneck on energy having been largely done away with since the advent of fusion generators. Humans could enjoy an autonomous standard of living that their ancestors could only dream of. With a few replicators a family can quickly set up a homestead on even the most inhospitable of worlds and build their own self-sufficient paradise. There were some limits. Certain forms of exotic matter such as psi-gems require specialized environments and high energy fab facilities that makes replicating them not cost effective. The Shi-Raka alone know the secrets of replicating living tissues. Creating life is something beyond the abilities of Federation and Alliance technology. But for most people the stipend of energy credits given to every Federation citizen is more than enough to satisfy all of their material and labor demands.

The introduction of chattel aliens transformed The Federation from a post-scarcity economy into what experts dub a “post capital **** market economy”. Xenos could not be replicated, and while on a granular level most xenos were interchangeable, human nature being what it was, a demand for highly trained, well bred xenos that could stand out amongst the crowd quickly arose. An entirely new currency, the shackle, was invented by a consortium of **** merchants who joined together to form the xeno-quad system of commoditizing people.

The shackle can be further subdivided into smaller units of value. Traditionally, a shackle is seen as being composed of six chains of twenty four links which can each be broken apart into six bits.

1 chain = 24 links= 144 bits = 1 retail Dranza

1 shackle= 6 chains= 144 links = 864 bits= 1 xeno at wholesale.

Xenos raised within The Federation are taught that it is imperative to increase their market value. An alien's worth is directly tied to how much a human is willing to pay for them.

Xenos from The Quad can be broadly divided into three categories. Wholesale, retail, and boutique.

In some parts of the Federation the overwhelming majority of xenos are owned by large financial institutions who keep their xenos confined within a corporate ghetto living in mobile habitation units. Humans can casually come and go from the alien's spartan dwelling places and do whatever they want with these owner-less aliens. Should a human find a particular xeno they want to take home with them, the price is a single shackle, usually.

Xenos who work hard, develop their skills, attend classes, and prove themselves to be of a higher value will be distinguished by a price tag around their neck. Those xenos who are permitted to wear a retail medallion gain access to exclusive venues where the xeno can market themselves to members of The Master Race looking for a skilled and reliable xeno.

Then there are those aliens who are born as a breed apart. Corporations and professional alien trainers invest a great deal of resources in producing exceptional xeno specimens and training them from a young age to maximize their worth. Specialist breeders who work with education specialists to produce unique chattel of the highest quality and market them in boutiques, showcases, and private clubs.