by Randal Sloan
The next few days quickly moved along, with the two of them checking each morning on the prototype and then spending the day on various tasks. Julie spent most of her time getting ready for the stockholders meeting. The extreme importance of the meeting had her a little worried, but she also felt good about what she had to share. Space Tech intelligence had picked up some intel suggesting a group was planning to cause trouble, so she looked at that group in depth.
Using all the resources of Space Tech, she was able to get a lot of information. A couple of hours later, she had found something very interesting. Julie quickly made a VR call to her uncle, who immediately agreed with her assessment. He also provided her with some suggestions on a course of action, and the contacts needed to make it happen. Julie didn’t waste any time, following his advice to the letter. A few hours later, everything was in place, which was good. The meeting was only a little over a day away.
#
Jon Rupert, the nephew of one of the leaders in the Organization, had finally settled into his small room in the Organization Space Station. Really it was a closet with a bed. He had been stuck in the medical wing for two days, one of the unfortunate ones susceptible to space sickness. Their little station had less than twenty percent gravity, and he just couldn’t handle it. It’s not like they gave them astronaut training. He had finally gotten over it, and was just now able to set his personal system up. That of course was another problem. He had been dark for over two days, which was a very bad thing. He desperately needed to check the “net” he kept tasked with his other job, that of a spy and mole for Space Tech.
He had originally believed in the ideals of the Organization when his uncle had first been involved as one of the founders. But he had gotten disenchanted with the Organization when he saw what they really intended to do. He had fallen in love with Julie Randolph’s music from the night before the attack on her family, and he was one of the few who knew that it was his uncle that led that attack. He had changed his allegiance, meeting in secret with Ted Randolph in Julie’s hospital room while she was still in a coma and agreeing to work with him. So he now worked deep in the higher echelon of the Organization.
When Jon had heard about their plans for the space station, he had feigned excitement for the project, getting himself this assignment. He really just wanted to be closer to his uncle, and he had felt this would give him the best opportunity to keep up with him. When he learned about the planned meeting of all the main leaders of the Organization on the space station, he had come up with the plan to take out his uncle along with all the other leaders. He intended to provide Space Tech with the information they needed to attack and overcome the station.
Originally the big meeting had been planned for a date that would have been tomorrow, but while in transit to the space station he had learned that they had postponed it, something about another plan they hoped to work out first. He didn’t push for details, planning to rely on his intelligence net. Then he had gotten sick, and for a little while, nothing else mattered.
He had hoped the meeting was going to be sooner rather than later, so that he would finally be able to get out of here. He couldn’t wait to meet Julie in person. He had imagined many times meeting her the first time. He just knew that she would be extremely impressed with him for his work to help them. After all he was one of the best there was. He could imagine where that would lead. He even thought that maybe they were destined to be together. After all, there was a big connection between him and her through his work, and it was her music that had helped save him.
Jon was glad to be back in his room. That was the only place he felt at all safe, and even here he had to be careful. He had triple protected his information in his pad and to anyone other than him it would present a generic OS view. He had stuff he didn’t dare let them see. Like the pictures of Julie he carried around. Putting her song on to listen to and pulling her picture up on his pad, he whispered, “It won’t be long. I’ll be able to show you just how much I can do for you. You’ll have the best systems in the world.”
Jon knew Julie had hired a couple of people from the Space Academy in the last week, because he had seen it when he ran his last search on Julie’s activities. He figured she must have gone to school with them. One of them was for sure a computer guy. You won’t need them when we are together. I can do it all for you. With your money, I will even be able to take your AI systems and make them the best out there, just for you. There won’t be any limit to what we can do. I love you!
He smiled as he realized he had finally said it. Looking at her picture, he once more whispered, “I love you!” He sat there a minute just looking at her picture, dreaming of their future. Finally, he swapped the generic view back up on his pad. He had work to do, a lot of lost time to make up for.
He had just gotten his net up and initiated his first search checking within the Organization systems for clues of their plans, when he received a VR from his uncle. I need you NOW! He knew they were having serious problems with the station control system. Of course, he was the only one with the knowledge to fix it. Someone must have told his uncle he was out of medical. Frustrated by the distraction, he left his little spider hiding in the corner. He would check the data it retrieved as soon as he got back. After all, what really could have happened while he was away?
As he left to join his uncle, he missed the beep from his system regarding the first results the search had found. When he got to the control room, the problem was much worse than he had thought. That meant that he had to spend the whole day working on it just to get it stable. They needed a real AI like Space Tech had. He knew that because he had studied its specs and was very jealous of it. They probably took it for granted, enjoying the capability it gave them, while he was stuck with this piece of junk. Their AI would have been able to handle the whole station out of the box. But instead he had to do a lot of custom work. While he was at it, he added a few extra customizations for use only by himself. You never knew when you might need something like that. He had learned to have backups to the backups to his plans.
By the time he got back to his cubbyhole, finally pulling up his search results, it was already much too late.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The Stockholders Meeting
Julie stood waiting just offstage in the auditorium reserved for the Space Tech Stockholder’s meeting. She knew she would be stepping out onto the stage in just a few moments. As they did every year, Space Tech leased a local conference center. The facility included an impressive auditorium that was used for local concerts and theatrical events. The main event for the stockholders meeting was held in that auditorium, which had a huge seating area. Space Tech had large VR screens arranged so that everyone would be able to see.
Even so, not everyone who wanted to attend would be able to get in. The largest shareholders were guaranteed admittance, as well as the media covering the event. All remaining shareholders who wanted to attend were chosen by lottery. A few special exceptions, such as the youngest and oldest shareholders, were invited to attend as well. Of course, the entire event was being simulcast worldwide in VR.
Security for the event was really tight. A one-block radius around the building was blocked off to all traffic except VIPs, who came in Space Tech sponsored limos. Everyone else had to walk. The main auditorium had enhanced weapon detection at every entrance. The small balconies in the auditorium, really personal boxes for watching a play or concert, had been closed off to the public, and the loading docks in the back blocked with concrete barricades. Similar measures had been taken across the entire complex. Security forces were everywhere and everyone who attended was carefully screened.
Despite the extra security, Julie was still nervous. She couldn’t shake the feeling that something was going to happen, although she hadn’t had any visions or even premonitions that she could point a finger to. She remembered in her studies with Mama Kash that sometimes the things that directly affected the one attempting the vision wer
e blocked from them.
Julie had been carefully briefed by her uncle about what to expect agenda-wise from the attendees. Most of the trouble, he expected, would be aimed specifically at her, trying to take advantage of her father not being there. She felt that she was ready for any of that.
Uncle Ted had warned her that one or more groups would probably try to oust her as CEO, replacing her with one of their own choosing. Julie had done her research and she felt that she was prepared. The arrangements she had made to counteract the group that she knew had ties to the Organization were in place. She hoped the outcome from her interaction with them would make any of the others a little more reluctant to try anything.
Earlier backstage in the dressing room, Caitlyn had helped Julie get ready, bringing to mind another time she had help getting ready backstage for a big event. That had been when she was getting ready to play her violin solo at the concert that had changed her life so much. Glad that female CEO’s had moved away from those ugly pantsuits, she once again had on a beautiful dress, much like the one she had worn at that concert. She even had her hair up with the same hair comb that she had worn for the concert, the one given to her by her mother that had evoked in her strong feelings, even when she had no memories. But this time it’s going to turn out differently for them. If only it could have been different that time, too. Julie’s thoughts turned sad for a moment, thinking of her mother. It was times like these that she missed her the most.
While Julie had still been struggling with her emotions, Zeke and Uncle Ted had slipped into her dressing room. “Don’t worry,” Uncle Ted told her, misinterpreting her mood to be due to nervousness. “I will be sitting right on the front row. I will also have a mike that will be tied in to the internal com system and I will be able to pass instructions to you. Not that I expect that will be necessary, as detailed as your preparations have been.” He gave her a careful hug before slipping out to leave her alone with Caitlyn and Zeke.
Smiling, Caitlyn told them. “I will be just outside. Let me know when you’re ready. I’ll come back to do the finishing touches.” She left too, leaving Julie alone with Zeke.
Zeke had also picked up on her melancholy mood. With their connection, he was able to comprehend it much deeper than her uncle. Recognizing the hair comb, he had a pretty good idea why. “You know,” he said. “The next time you wear that hair comb, it will probably be at our wedding. Of course, you will be even more beautiful then.” He didn’t get any further, her reaction just what he expected. Although more tears than he would have wanted. Caitlyn would have to fix her makeup. He held her close, letting her work through all her emotions.
Pulling back far enough to give him a smile, Julie tried to look into his eyes, although her tears got in the way. “I’m going to hold you to that, bud. When this is all over, we need to make that official.”
“Yes,” Zeke told her. “I think so too.” Neither one spoke for a moment, but Zeke knew she would have to go out soon. “I will be watching from the control room and you can reach me on com if you need me,” he reassured her. He turned to leave, stopping at the door. “I love you!” he said with a smile. Caitlyn rushed back in, quickly doing the repairs to her makeup that she had suspected she would need.
Julie’s thoughts were interrupted by when a notification warning popped up on her VR. An announcement over the sound system preceding her, Julie stepped out on the stage and up to the podium to loud applause. Smiling, she waited until the applause died down, then spoke into the VR mike she was wearing, “Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, stockholders, directors and media representatives. It is an honor today that I get the privilege of speaking to you regarding our great company.”
Looking directly at the camera, she went on, “I don’t have to tell you what a great year we have had. Record revenue, record income. I will, however, go over some of that in a few minutes. Then we will vote on the proposals in our agenda.“
Before she could continue, Julie was interrupted by a group of individuals who stood, the whole group yelling and demanding to be recognized. She could have just had them removed, as they were violating protocol. She could have also attempted to disallow their proposal, since it had not been submitted prior to the meeting, something that, while not absolutely required, was traditional. However, she wanted to get this over with anyway.
Julie let a little of her anger toward the Organization slip into her voice. “Although you are in complete violation of protocol, I will allow you to speak. This should in no way be construed that such behavior will be allowed in the future. Any additional violations will be met with immediate removal from this gathering.”
One of the assistants holding a microphone carried it over to the group. The leader of the group grabbed the microphone from his hand and immediately started to speak. “Our group, a consortium representing 1.8% of the voting shares, most adamantly demand that you step down from the role of CEO and allow a suitable candidate be put in your place. Furthermore—“
Julie had prearranged a signal for troublemakers to be cut-off. She gave that signal. Although the idiot tried to continue, he no longer had any sound broadcast. It was her little jib back at them for interrupting her. “You can just stop there,” she told him. “Your proposal is not valid, as you no longer own any shares of Space Tech stock. I have been working with federal prosecutors investigating your consortium, and they have informed me that as of 0900 today, due to ties to a criminal organization, the shares of stock you claim ownership of have been seized by the US Attorney General. They also informed me they intend to file charges. I would suggest you obtain legal counsel. Security will be escorting you out of the meeting.”
The meeting was interrupted for a few moments as a large contingent of security personnel surrounded the group, forcefully requesting they leave the meeting. The action was quite a blow to those who had might have had similar plans, stirring up a strong negative reaction in the crowd. They knew any further attempts by them would by association be looked upon in a negative light. Julie’s plan had worked perfectly, so that no one else spoke up.
When the group was mostly out of the room, Julie went on. “Now for the rest of you, assuming your membership is valid and you will be voting legitimately, you already know our company has great leadership, and we have everything under control. You have already seen a ten percent increase of the stock price in the past quarter.” She then went over the latest sales figures that, as usual, beat all the analysts but that was only the beginning of her news.
Smiling, Julie paused for dramatic effect. Then she started on her real list. “Today I am announcing that we have signed a new zechronium agreement with Kinza. In return for human rights improvements by them, we are offering them a ten percent increase in the price that we will pay them. You should be aware that we only need about forty percent of our supply from them, but we are glad to be able to help that poor country with what to us is a very small expense.” Julie paused a minute to let that sink in. From her viewpoint the increase was a positive and the stockholders would at pleased that the risk to Space Tech had been mitigated.
Nowhere near finished, Julie dropped the next bombshell. “I am also announcing today, Space Tech has completed the construction of a number of anti-pirate ships, the exact number of which I will not disclose for security reasons, but it is more than one or two. Some of them will be assigned to escort duty for our mining ships so there will be no more lost shipments.” She looked right at the VR camera. “They had better look out, I’m coming after them, too!”
Julie paused again as applause broke out from the audience. Waiting until it died down, she gave them the next one. “Now, I would like to talk a moment about our plans regarding our stock. For starters, I am announcing a ten percent dividend increase effective our next payout. I feel like that is an easy way to give back directly to our shareholders a portion of our continued growth.”
Smiling at the reaction, she went on. “I am also announcing a multi-billion dollar s
tock buy-back program which we will give the details on later. The management at Space Tech believes in our stock and this is our way of showing that. All of these steps will make the shares you currently own more valuable.”
She had one more, which she could only give as a teaser. If they only knew. “And…” She gave them a huge smile, pausing for suspense. “There’s one other thing…” she said, “Something really big is in the works, as you will see soon. I’m sorry, I can’t give you details, but I promise it is big. You know the size of our R&D, but this is going to be beyond all that.”
At this point, the audience was in shock, she could tell. So she released the remaining proposals for their votes. That took a few minutes but it went exactly as they expected. The final results for all the proposals were just as Space Tech management preferred.
Zeke had been monitoring in the control room, and he had spotted something suspicious, a movement in the balcony area above Julie, an area which was supposed to be closed to all access. But before he could call her, suddenly their communications went out, some kind of jamming. He was panicked by it, mentally shouting, “Look out Julie!”
Amazingly, somehow, Julie heard him. She was moving in an instant, at the same time sending a command to their control system to drop the lights. A bullet passed inches from her head, missing her only because of her instant movement. The shooter had been using a silencer so that no one else could have heard the sound of the shot, but Julie did. A knife had automatically appeared in her hand, and was instantly flying back along the path to the shooter. Concentrating on the sound from that spot, she heard the knife hit home.
Using the same sound sensitivity, she scanned across the second balcony area at the same level until she heard a bolt being drawn back on a second sniper rifle. Instantly a second knife was on the way. She heard it strike home too. Scanning the rest of the room, she didn’t hear anything else. Calmly she moved back to the spot where she had been standing before it all started, and brought the lights back up.
