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Corpo Age - Chapter 208: Meetings after Meetings
🕑 Added 2024-09-16 11:45:18 +0000 UTCOur group watched on in bewilderment as a man in his thirties was scrambled for the orange canister inside an emergency box. The use of this canister was something all visitors were informed of as they entered the city. It was sealant meant to block off any breaches in the structure of the space station.
We didn’t detect any disturbance even when I scanned our vicinity, so we were left wondering what he was doing. Still, it usually wasn’t a good idea to go up to someone and demand to know what they were up to.
Not wanting to get involved, I swiftly sent a message to all my employees, “Let’s keep moving. Just ignore him.”
I watched as our administrative personnel shifted away from the strange man while a portion of our security detail moved to block off the path between us and the potential threat. Our guards were invisible, so it would only appear like we were moving along, minding our own business.
However, the streets were relatively empty. Most people were at work. This meant the unidentified man unsurprisingly noticed us. When he saw us, his expression quickly changed to that of alarm. He alternated glances between us and the orange canister in his hand. Then he came to a decision and abruptly reached into his pockets, drawing something from his pockets.
My security instantly reacted, positioning themselves between us. His sudden actions may have caused us to shoot him. To be exact, they would have shot him if our personnel hadn’t gotten their latest upgrade. The new bio-coprocessor afforded them more time to analyze and react accordingly. They were able to watch the entire ordeal with time to spare, recognizing correctly that it was a terminal in the man’s hand.
Before giving us an explanation, the man put the device to his ear and placed a call as he did a quick one-eighty. He didn’t even wait for the call to connect and started running.
“Well, that’s quite the character,” Claire commented.
“Whatever. We don’t have time for that. Come on, it’s almost time for our meeting,” I urged.
My auditory implants picked up sounds of sirens off in the distance, so I could guess what had happened. However, it was none of my business.
We swiftly entered the cafe and were promptly greeted by the staff. Our security personnel disabled their Shades as they came in behind us. We had already checked in with the cafe and confirmed they were allowed in. Though, it didn’t remove any of the awkwardness of seeing fully armed individuals strolling into a high-class establishment.
Once we were ready, the staff led us past the common area and into an extravagant marble elevator. The ride didn’t only go up or down, as the elevator brought us deeper into the building. Within a minute, we stepped off into what seemed to be a fancy-looking lobby for a spa.
No one came to greet us this time. Instead, a robot dressed in a butler’s uniform popped up from behind the counter.
“Welcome. Please confirm you are Mr. Halls, who has reserved a private room for the next four hours.”
“That’s correct,” I replied.
It wasn’t strange talking to the bot at all, as I was always conversing with Lanus. Still, my software knowledge kept me reminded that this bot wasn’t a true AI. It simply had a pre-recorded set of reactions for different stimuli.
“Affirmative. Welcome, Mr. Halls. Please follow me.”
The bot led us down a corridor, leading us even further into the building. We only came to a stop at room number 002. Wordlessly opening the door for us, the bot wordlessly left as soon as we had all entered.
Inside, the thing that drew our attention the most was naturally the giant window that looked over one of the busy ports in the city. Numerous spacecraft were ferrying their contents around, with the dock facilities buzzing with activity. My optics zoomed in to give me a clearer view of the thousands of workers carrying about their work.
Even with all the heavy machinery around, the workers still had to carry large crates in and out of the giant shipping containers that filled the scenery. It gave me further affirmation that my manual labor-focused cyberarm would serve a great purpose.
While most of us were enjoying the view of the activities that took place in the dark expanse, Claire nonchalantly sat down and read over the menu.
“Oooh, moonlight hydrogen tea. Says it’s made from material shipped directly from the moon within the last forty-eight hours. What do you all want to drink?”
Nobody batted an eye to Claire’s usual antics, with some of her assistants joining in with examining the menu.
Very soon, the same bot returned with our order and we began our final briefing before our meetings got started.
“Just to confirm, everyone, please check if you have brought all the required documents that we’ll be exchanging with the representatives we’ll be meeting momentarily,” Claire ordered.
Our employees began fetching their folders, searching for the physical copies of various documents. Some of them were written on plastic sheets, while the more important agreements were written on authentic paper. While an electronic copy worked fine, it was proper etiquette to provide a physical copy as well. At least for those who were influential enough to reach space.
Glancing off to the corner of the room, I found her worries to be completely unwarranted. That was because there was a functional printer in the corner, connected to a terminal. I could even spot packs of expensive paper beside it as well. The establishment we were in was evidently prepared to address every business need.
While we busied ourselves to get prepared, time mercilessly went by like a hurricane. The first delegation we were scheduled to meet had arrived.
A group of three, dressed in monotone corporate suits, entered into the room. They looked lifeless until the moment we made eye contact, putting on a cheerful demeanor in an instant.
“Good day to you, Mr. Halls. It’s been some time,” He said with a grin as he shook my hand.
“Yes, it’s good to see you again, Mr. Zaderick.”
The man before me was one of the numerous guests who had approached me during our promotion celebration. His company worked in a vital industry and was based on Aegis.
He sat down and ordered himself some refreshment as we spoke pleasantries to each other. We also introduced our assistants during the small talk. They had a total of three people in their party, while we had five who would be involved with the talks. The others discreetly retreated away from view. The private room we were in was just that large.
After some exhausting pleasantries, we finally got down to the meat of our discussion.
“As we have mentioned during your celebration, our company is more than happy to work with you to find the property you desire. I’ve gotten a basic idea of what you want over our emails, but there are a lot of details we aren’t permitted to send out. Why don’t we start by going over these prospective properties?”
Zaderick was from Clive & Jim Corporation, more commonly referred to as C&J corp. They were property developers who had real estate in every major hub in the world. They were people who could point me in the right direction of attaining my own shipyard.
“Yes, please go ahead.”
Zaderick nodded and placed a small circular device down on the table. It immediately lit up, projecting a large screen for all to see.
“We at C&J have a plethora of options for you to choose from, even if you are only considering properties in Aegis. To reiterate, your requirement is simply a place that can be used as a shipyard, and discreet enough so you won’t have to worry about prying eyes. Is that correct?
I nodded.
“Here are the specific requirements,” Claire added, sending him a file.
“Understood. It’s as I surmised. Please take a look at my recommendations here.”
The screen changed, taking us on a virtual tour of some shipyards.
“The one you see here is one of the prime shipyards money can buy, or, if you so wish, rent. It was constructed by the Florence Corporation. They have recently moved all production into their private station in recent years, leaving it vacant, but it is still in good condition.”
He proceeded to give us the rundown of several abandoned shipyards, a few small ones that were facing financial difficulties. They all sounded the same to me, as it was just an empty space we were looking for. They didn’t come with any hardware, which was where the crux lay.
The boring presentation continued, and I had to keep up my facade. Thankfully, my new optics came with the ability to hide the glare. I could have a movie pulled up and the surrounding people would be none the wiser. Using that to my advantage, I scoured for information on the web or looked over my current research projects.
I only paused when it only got a little more interesting as he presented about a place that was a decommissioned mission silo. Even then, it was basically just a hole in the space station. I let my employees deal with analyzing the pros and cons.
Before I knew it, C&J had finished their presentation and had left, but not without leaving down all the details to my employees. We would get back to them at a later date.
The meetings continued, with A-Flux Incorporated next. Joey had introduced them to me, people who specialized in dealing with nuclear power reactors. Their products were required unless I could come through with an energy source of my own. Currently, I was busy enough, so buying ready-made products wasn’t a bad idea. After all, being completely self-sufficient was only an ideal. In practice, it wasn’t realistic.
I slogged through the day, attending every single one of these meetings. The only pleasant thing about them was that they started and ended on time.
Like that, we met with heavy equipment vendors for the hardware expected of a shipyard. Then with life support system vendors, propulsion chemicals, raw ore suppliers, spacesuits, emergency equipment, and a myriad of others.
It didn’t take a genius to realize this would be a long-term project.
Throughout the entire day, we only took a break for lunch. Then we went straight back to meetings until the evening. When the final meeting came, I couldn’t help but be excited for it all to be over.
“Representative Kai, we meet again,” I shook his hand, mustering every last bit of energy I had to look enthusiastic about his arrival.
“Yes, I’m happy you have reached out to us. I believe you prefer to get straight down to business, correct? So why don’t we?”
His words gave me another burst of energy. I didn’t even care about how it was likely the result of their analyst carefully studying me because of the respite it gave me.
“Of course, let us proceed, then.”
Unlike the others who had come prepared with a holographic projector with their presentation on it, Kai simply walked over to the large windows overlooking the docks below.
Even after a day, the activity down there didn’t cease even a bit. Without my optics magnifying the scene, it looked like an army of ants swarming all over the place.
He proceeded to politely take a handheld terminal and whispered something unintelligible despite my auditory implants, due to the distance between us. It only lasted a moment before he turned his gaze back to me with a grin.
“Our company holds this partnership in high regard. Which is why our executives green-lighted some of what you requested right away. Behold.”
The backdrop that depicted both the coldness of space and the industriousness of the dock suddenly darkened upon his words. All light coming through the window vanished. The abruptness of the matter made me jump up from my seat. If the room wasn’t still adequately lighted, I would have concluded the power grid was under attack.
Thankfully, it didn’t come to that. Still, it did cause a reaction from me and my personnel.
I heard several yelps from beside me, coming from Claire’s assistants. Thorne even made himself to my side, grasping at my arm, prepared to usher me away. Perceptively, he didn’t go through with it. He stepped down just as fast as he reacted. It was because we both realized what type of show Ferrumus Corporation was putting on.
“What do you think?” Kai asked with a wide smile.
Behind him was a colossal vessel. A spaceship, to be exact. It was extremely close to us, covering the view of everyone else. Through the glass, we could even make out the bridge. As if reading my mind, the cold metal exterior turned translucent, revealing the bridge crew inside the ship.
The man sitting in what I presumed to be the captain’s chair waved at us. Then a thick robotic arm appeared from nowhere. Immediately following it was a menacing drill that was pointed straight at us, spinning at full power.
