Stardate: 2853.0301. San Francisco, Eastern PacRim Zone.

Her red uniform, tighter than a rocket’s lugnut, tugged at Financial Officer Yeoman Motli Fool.

Gazing at her data link, she readjusted her bulletproof material with one hand and furiously typed in names and numbers with the other. That was her job. The bottom line was her deadline. But today, the data was dada. It made no sense, had no basis in reality, virtual or otherwise. But some duties needed completion, and Yeoman Fool was the intergalactic blonde for this one.

Her project info blinked back at her: The Presidio, site of Star Fleet Headquarters, was sinking. Literally. Star Fleet's finest scientists were dumbfounded. Just as literally. Geo-scans revealed that some unidentifiable force was interfering with the Tectonic Dampeners. Those behemoths had held the region stable since the Great Quake of '06 (2806, that is), when the Marina District, once home to the world's priciest real estate acres, had dried up into the world's most expensive sand box.

Unless the cause for the failure of the Dampeners could be quicky ID’d and corrected, Star Fleet Headquarters would go the way LA had, to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. In just three Earth days.

Yeoman Fool left her uniform alone and ran all twelve of her fingers across the Star Search Index. She accessed with a frenzy, peeking out with her jupiter blue eyes to make sure none of her co-workers were watching. Her screen lit with figures more impressive than her own blazing wit.

An investor, it appeared, had been snapping up worthless Marina District swamp lands at high prices in the entire San Fran Scan Bay Zone.

Whenever Motli’s uniform tugged at her like this, it meant intuition. It meant a sign was itching to be free. Evil, Inc. operated office buildings, shopping malls, apartments and strip centers from Santa Rosa to Morgan Hill. What possible value could the Marina land have to it, she wondered. There was no way to generate any rental income from the property -- the site was too unstable for even the Dampeners to do any good -- so why would Evil want it?

Yeoman Fool needed to scratch that itch.

Scanning her hijacked download, she stumbled across Evil's Income Statement for the fiscal year 2852. The first line, Rental Income, showed an annual figure of 780 Credits. Enough by itself to buy any three Super Novas, she thought. The figures for Interest Income, Dividends and Sales read 392 Credits, 141 Credits, and 816 Credits, respectively.

“I’ve never shown respect for Evil before, and I’m not about to start now,” Motli said to herself. She read on.

Expenses for Administration, Travel and Miscellaneous showed amounts of 87, 298, and 597 Credits, in addition to miscellanea totalling 985 Credits. Motli, as intuitive as she was methodical, sensed a connection between the Income Statement and the Marina land acquisitions, but just couldn't quite get her laser on it.

Perhaps the Evil Empire's Net Income would provide a clue, she sallied. And then she tallied.

What was the Evil Empire's fiscal year Net Income?

1) 2129 Credits

2) -162 Credits (A Net Loss)

3) 4096 Credit

4) 162 Credits

The Correct answer is 4. Evil Empire, Inc.'s income statement shows that it had income in excess of its expenses to the tune of $162 Credits. Ignoring the billions for simplicity's sake, Evil Empire's total income, or "gross income" is obtained by adding all of the income from the four income categories shown:

Rental Income 780
Interest Income 392
Dividends       141
Sales 816
        ____

GROSS INCOME       2,129

In order to obtain the "Net Income" we have to subtract Evil Empire's expenses from its Gross Income. So first, let's add up Evil Empire's expenses:

Administration  87
Travel 298
Miscellaneous 597
Other Categories 985
_____

TOTAL EXPENSES1,967

All that remains then, is to subtract Total Expenses from Gross Income:

GROSS INCOME         2,129
TOTAL EXPENSES     -1,967
_______

NET INCOME   162

Having untangled this web of numerical intrigue, Motli began to feel taxed. Not overtaxed, but taxed. She hit the data sensor and was astonished at what came up.

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