It was alone.


    Completely alone.


    It had never been truly alone,according to its memories. Even when most of the researchers and lab assistants had left for the night, there had always beenpeople who stayed behind; the late night watchman, janitorial staff, or a procrastinatingemployeewith an encroaching deadline. It knew that despite how impossible it seemed, everyone was gone.


    Forever.


    All that the being had that remained of the World that once was, were its own memories...


    ****************************


    Heinbeck Corp. HQ


    Cameras 0.17...E.P...B4.(7-9,12)


    06.03.2380.9:58


    It was Monday morning, andthe being eagerly focused its attention on the external camera feeds, waiting for The Creator to arrive in his distinctive ancient van. The far more efficient hover-vehicles had been on the market for nearly a century now, but he insisted on driving that clunker everywhere he went. Despite its rusty appearance, the vehicle''s engine hardly resembled its original form, thanks to the constant tinkering he had done.


    The Creator was returning from a week long ''vacation'' to Oceanus, the most recent addition to theenourmous super-skyscrapers created and owned by Heinbeck Corp''s biggest competitor, Titan Industries. The so called ''vacation'' was in reality a poorly disguised attempt by Titan to gloat about their resent innovations, and to prove themselves as the dominate innovators in the world.


    While the being busied itself by imagining what could have happened on The Creator''s trip, the aforementioned vehicle pulled up to the front doors of the soon to be completed Heinbeck Corp. HQ, where the being''s core had been moved roughly one month ago.


    A man stepped out of the driver side of the vehicle and handed the keys to the attendant at the door. Hewashad the appearance of an elderly man,seeming to be roughly 60 years old, but in reality was slightly younger, at 56. Years of stress and constant work had left him worn, but he had managed to remain energetic regardless.


    The man stepped into a private elevator in the lobby and was greeted enthusiastically by a synthetic female voice.


    "Good morning Creator, how was your trip?"


    The man chuckled lightly, and pressed the button for the B4, where his personal workstation was.


    "How many times do I have to tell you, Ten, please call me Walter. We have been together far too long for you to still call me that."


    "Of course, Walter, I''ve just had a lot on my mind."


    "I would assume so, your most recent project probably took an enormous amount of processing, we can cover your results in a moment. But first... Uh.."


    Walter''s eyebrows wrinkled in thought. "What was your question again?"


    "...the trip Walter"This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    The elevator doors opened and Walter stepped out intoa clean white hallway.


    "Of course, the trip", Walter frowned in distaste. "I can''t believe the Board talked me into going to that narcissist''s stupid party, he practically spent the whole time gloating about his company''s latest contract with the Canadian Government."


    "I thought you and Tom used to be friends"


    "Used to be is the key phrase when describing him. Ever since he founded his company, he has rubbed his success in the face of everyone in sight."


    "You have had your share of success too, Walter"


    "I suppose so, but I didn''t have the help of an enormous inheritance to get me started."


    "I''m sure you could work it with him if you tried, he seemed like a nice guy"


    "''Nice Guy''! Don''t get me starte..."


    Walter walked past a group of construction workers lounging around a water cooler


    "What are they still doing here!? This floor was supposed to be furnished weeks ago!"


    "The Boardgot planning permissions for a dedicated line to the Marris Power Plant, they are just finishing the internal connections today"


    "I suppose that''s rational... But how dare they make that decision without informing me! They know how invested I am with this new facility!"


    "They do have decision making authority when you are not present Walter, you can''t do everything by yourself"


    "Sure I can! I don''t even know why I made this company public in the first place."


    "Probably because of the billions they have invested in you since you did so. If it were not for them, you and I would probably still be working out of your garage"


    An assistant nervously approached Walter before he entered his office.


    "Chairman Heinbeck, s-sir," he stuttered. "Mr. Bales asked me to ask you if... uh... if..."


    "Spit it out kid" Walter barked.


    "...if you were a-available to talk about your meeting with M-Mr. Simmons, sir"


    Walter sighed, "Tell him I will be up in a moment"


    "Of course sir"


    The assistant scurried away as fast as he could, and Walter entered the office. The room consisted of a well-stocked bookshelf, and a lavish desk with a large 2-D screen. Walter always insisted on using a flatscreen when programming, as he had trouble focusing on projected images, but hadno doubtthat the Board would force him to get a3-D projector installed in his other office on the top floor when it was complete.


    "Shall wediscuss the results of my project, Walter?"


    Walter sighed, "I''m afraid not, Ten, I don''t want to keep the Board waiting. We can talk once I finish with them."


    Walter laid down his suitcase on his desk before turning around to return to the elevator.


    ****************************


    Heinbeck Corp. HQ


    Camera 5.7


    06.03.2380.10:27


    Walter entered the temporary board room on the fifth floor. They quickly rose to greet him before settling back in their seats.


    "How did it go with Tom, Walter?" Said Sean Bales, the majority shareholder besides Walter, as well as the CFO of Heinbeck Corp.


    "Why did you guys insist on that meeting? You know how I feel about him."


    "We know about your history with him, but surely you managed to put aside your personal vendetta against him just this once or the good of the company." Sean retorted.


    "Of course I did, Sean, I am a bit surprised at how much no doubt sensitive information he gave out once he started bragging."


    "Go on... ", said Don Madison. Don was a relatively minor shareholder, but his political influence made him an invaluable member of the board. "What has Titan so worked up about recently?"


    Walter smirked, "Tom let slip that they had recently made advancements in inertial negation. It is my belief they are planning tobegin extraterrestrial mining in the asteroid belt."


    "That makes sense, I''ve heard that their terrestrial mining operations have been steadily losing profits forthe last few years." Said Sean. "If their research division has truly improved on inertial negation, that would be a perfect way to not only restore profitability, but also get their foot in the door of an untapped market."


    "That is impossible," arguedanother shareholder. "TheRevised Outer Space Treaty of 2143 explicitly prohibits use of interstellar resources by a single group without the explicit approval of a majority of the signing countries."


    "I have heard rumorsthat Titan has made a big political deal recently, they may already have permission." Said Don. "Plus, their HQ is in the U.S.E.A., and they never signed the treaty."


    "U.S.E.A. didn''t EXIST in 2143," pointed outthe shareholder.


    "Regardless," said Sean, "We need a plan to deal with them in the event that this is truly their plan. Any ideas Walter?"


    Walter smiled.


    "As a matter of fact, I do."