Van Rijn And The Universe I

"Margin of Profit."

I have posted a lot about Nicholas van Rijn's point of view (pov). See here. Usually, we see van Rijn as others see him. The Man Who Counts is about his effects on others. Twice in his introductory short story, "Margin of Profit," van Rijn is alone and the reader shares his pov. On each of these occasions, the merchant contemplates a different aspect of the universe.

First, he descends in an air car to his mansion on the peak of Kilimanjaro "...through a night of needle-sharp stars, toward high turrets and glowing lights." (p. 78) He mutters defiance at his current enemies in the direction of Scorpio, Antares and Sagittarius. Then he remembers past times:

"He thought back to days when he had ridden ships through yonder spaces, bargaining in strange cities or strange wildernesses, or beneath unblue skies and in poisonous winds, for treasures Earth had not yet imagined. For a moment, wistfulness tugged at him." (ibid.)

My computer does not recognize "unblue" but a writer is free to coin new words, also to create some characters at the beginnings of their careers and others with much to look back on, in this case, two kinds of adventure, extra-solar exploration and the search for wealth.