Nick didn't hesitate as he stepped off the maglev and into the crumbling heart of Terminus' 'black market' — which was more like the open market since everybody already knew about it.
Even the Federation officials in charge of overseeing operations on Terminus knew about the place, but just left them to do their own thing.
Naturally, this was because they brought a lot of profit and income streams through Terminus, but also surprisingly because they contributed a lot of money to the planet's economy — since unlike what most people think, the vendors there paid their taxes.
Unlike in the past, it was nearly impossible for people to avoid paying taxes, criminal or not.
Though the most important reason they were even allowed to operate so openly was obviously because the criminal gangs behind them had influence in the Federation that spanned beyond just Terminus itself.
In today's day and age, money and connections were power.
