[The Pantheon - 108th Floor]
Alex sat in his office, looking at the sunrise. He had just returned from Point Nemo. He felt calm. He reached for his cup of Blue Mountain Coffee ($500/cup).
"Dawn," Alex said. "Order breakfast. I want a wagyu steak sandwich."
"Processing..." Dawn's voice replied. Then, silence. "Error. Transaction Declined."
Alex frowned. "Declined? Try the other card."
"Error. Centurion Card Declined. Visa Infinite Declined. Master Account Frozen."
Alex set his coffee down. "Dawn, what is going on?"
"Administrator, a Priority One Alert has just been issued by the United Nations Security Council."
The giant wall-screen turned on. It wasn't just one news channel; it was all of them. CNN, BBC, Al Jazeera. They were all showing Alex's face with a red "WANTED" stamp.
[BREAKING NEWS: PANTHEON ASSETS FROZEN] "The United Nations has unanimously voted to sanction 'The Pantheon Corporation' for alleged acts of global economic terrorism. All assets belonging to the entity known as 'Alex' have been frozen. The SWIFT banking system has blocked his access. He is now financially isolated."
"Economic terrorism?" Alex laughed. "I donated to charity."
"Master," Luna walked in, looking at her phone. "The water company just cut our supply. The electricity grid is fluctuating. The Council is turning off the utilities."
Alex stood up. He checked his System Panel.
[System Balance: Infinite.] [Real World Access: BLOCKED.]
He had infinite money, but nowhere to spend it. It was like having a billion gallons of water but no pipe to pour it through.
"They control the banks," Alex muttered, remembering the Banker's knitting needles. "They control the laws."
Suddenly, the elevator dinged. It wasn't a guest. It was Emily, his financial manager. She was hyperventilating.
"Sir! It's a disaster!" Emily screamed, dropping a stack of papers. "The SEC, the IRS, and Interpol just raided our New York office! They seized the servers! We can't pay the staff! The employees are panicking!"
Alex walked to the window. Below, he could see police cars surrounding the Pantheon. They weren't there to arrest him yet; they were there to enforce the sanction.
"They think they can starve me out," Alex whispered. "They think that if they cut off my access to their system, I will beg for mercy."
"What do we do, Sir?" Emily cried. "We can't operate without a banking license! We are illegal!"
Alex looked at Emily. A cold smile formed on his lips.
"Emily, what is the one thing that International Law cannot touch?"
"I... I don't know," Emily stammered. "Everything is subject to International Law!"
"Wrong," Alex corrected. "A Sovereign Nation makes its own laws."
Alex turned to the map of the world on the wall. He pointed to a small cluster of islands in the Mediterranean Sea.
"Dawn," Alex asked. "Access the 'Dark Finance' channel. The one the Council doesn't control."
"Dark Finance channel active. Warning: High fees."
"Find me a country," Alex ordered. "A small one. One that is drowning in debt. One that is desperate enough to sell its soul."
"Searching..."
"Target Found: The Principality of San Solara."
Location: Mediterranean Sea.
Population: 50,000.
Debt: $20 Billion (Defaulting in 24 hours).
Status: Sovereign State with UN Seat.
"Perfect," Alex straightened his tie. "If the United Nations won't let me play by their rules, I'll become a member of the United Nations."
"Sir?" Emily asked, confused. "You can't just buy a country."
"Watch me," Alex said. "Dawn, connect me to the Prince of San Solara. Tell him Santa Claus is coming to town."