Participants:
| Scene Title | 7 Rings |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Warren Ray invites Eve Mas to a rather questionable business meeting. |
| Date | September 1, 2020 |
Warren Ray's Private Jet, Kadath One
Above Nur-Sultan, Capital of Kazakhstan
7:23 am, ALMT
"It's not excessive. This is Eve Mas, do you expect her to roll over and just make a deal because I have an impressive business? This woman is serious, she has principles. She'll judge me as much as she's judging my business." Warren states to the various lawyers and assistants sitting on the plane with him, and the conference call happening on the airplanes speakers."
"You're not a billionaire, Warren Ray. Doing something insane like this could jeopardize the entire meeting. Just invite her to New York, to the meeting room." says an angry man on the speaker.
"I know what I'm doing. And she's already here anyway, I paid for her to ride first class. I thought it was inappropriate to invite her on the private jet." he points out right before the man on the speaker angrily tosses a phone.
At least, that's what it sounds like happened.
Khan Shatyr Entertainment Center
Nur-Sultan, Capital of Kazakhstan
7:59 am, ALMT
The Khan Shatr Entertainment Center is a massive neofuturistic tent, part mall, part rich people theme park. There are plants everywhere, a small waterfall several floors up, many different attractions that make this seem almost like another world, and incredibly high class shopping and eating.
Warren Ray appears in his best summer suit, a cream suit with a white shirt under the blazer, and shiny gold pinstripes. He wears rather subtle wooden sandals, likely bought locally. He is dressed for the heat, comfort, and fashion. He refuses to wear anything too hot for simply the sake of business, it would betray a level of insincerity that he does not wish to portray to Eve Mas.
Thankfully, Khan Shatr is meant to remain in between 60 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit, so the temperatures never become too outrageous.
Eve Mas herself was paid to get here first class on her airline of choice, and told to meet him in the center of the building, where the architecture converges under the central point of the tent.
There are plenty of people around, this is a busy place, and he has to straighten his Prada glasses when someone suddenly bumps into him. But this is how he prefers it.
He prefers to be among the people, not isolated like some kind of oligarchal noble sitting upon his fief.
"A glass of Clase Azul Mezcal would have been preferred on my flight but the lesser brands did alright, I suppose." The voice is behind Warren and there Eve Mas stands in a very thin off white dress that flutters in the warm wind. Her sandals are black and her makeup as dark as ever. Lips painted the deepest black spread into a small smile but her eyes remain guarded, what did he want exactly. This was quite a gesture, for business or otherwise.
One doesn't just refuse a first class ticket to a place like this.
Her black hair is pulled back into a high ponytail but a few stray wisps of hair fall into her doe brown eyes. A fancy looking matte black phone is held loosely in her hands, it buzzes every now and then but Eve gambles those precious moments not directing the ebb and flow of her company to continue staring at Warren.
"To what do I owe this rather grandiose pleasure Mister Ray,"
"I thought it would be inappropriate to invite you on my private jet, though if you'd like a proper drink, then I will gladly return you home on it." Warren offers his hand to her, smiling. "Eve Mas, I want to offer you the future. And I can't offer you the future in a boardroom, or with lawyers being deathly afraid of failure. I wanted to bring you somewhere nice, take you shopping, to the nice restaurants, and enjoy a nice vacation while we discuss the future. Consider this a weekend long meeting."
"The product I'm offering is simple. As you probably know, years ago I designed a particle accelerator, one of the most advanced and innovative in the world. And now that particle accelerator is finished. The fruits of that labor will begin to show very soon." He's already walking, headed towards the rather ridiculous restaurants.
"We'll have breakfast before shopping." he states, interrupting himself. "There will be scientific innovations, breakthroughs in engineering, things you couldn't imagine. Most corporations wouldn't go so far as to design their own particle accelerator, but I am a man who creates meta science, the science that creates science. What I'm asking you for isn't strictly money, not right now at least. In fact, I'm not asking you for anything, I'm offering you something. The exclusive rights to invest in the production of any innovations that come from this research."
He stops her outside of a restaurant called Ozyurt, wanting to finish his opening statement before they enter. "Any amount that you invest in these individual innovations relative to my company's, you'll get that percentage of a stake in the profits that come from it."
"Anyway, that's the basic offer. But why I brought you here was for us to get to know each other. I've heard things about you, things that make me want to work with you. I don't work with anyone on purely the basis of money, I am a man carving out the path of the future, and I don't believe in business and capitalism in the traditional sense of those words." He holds her hand up, peering deeply into her eyes, fiercely even.
His eyes that only see the future, and a present that can build a path to such. "You are here because you seem like a woman who wants to build the world. Starting a simple business is a lot safer than venture capitalism, which means you have ambitions. I want to know those ambitions. I want to know the passions that set your heart on fire."
Eve is silent and just looks at the younger man as he lifts her hand, she allows it. A woman like her is made offers and deals all the time. Warren Ray was intelligent even if a bit overzealous. "And what exactly would you see being done with your research?" She begins to walk and lets her hand trail from her grasp. The ends of her dress kick up from the breeze and she continues forward, obviously expecting him to follow.
"You see the future, a way to influence the world and leave your mark. Forever to be remembered. Ambition is attractive in the race to make money."
To build a world.
Miraculously Eve is not checking her phone but it is always near in the tiny black clutch she carries, the purse vibrates every so often but she ignores it for now. "What I want is for the greatest ideas to have the chance to blossom like a orchid in fresh bloom. I want to see magic. Something that invokes a feeling. A message."
"And 40 percent,"
Ambition.
"You see, I view particle accelerator research as the new gold rush. But the gold is the unknown. That's the beauty of it, really, we don't really know what we'll do with the research, because we don't know what we'll find. But what I do know is, because of my innovations, we will find new and exciting things, things that will no doubt change the world. That is ultimately the nature of my offer…" Warren places his other hand on top of the one he's already holding.
"I know that we'll change the world, I simply don't know what form that will take until we activate the accelerator. And then it'll be scientists getting nonstop data. That's why I offer you the opportunity to pick and choose what interests you, as I get data and find applications. My hope, though, my ultimate dream…" He passionate gaze never breaks, his every word as sincere as humanly possible. "Is to innovate humanity to the point of the old world being obsolete. To bring us to a place where no one suffers or wants for anything."
"Forty percent and you allow me to take you shopping and eating all weekend." he counter-offers, as if he isn't just adding more things on top of what she's asking.
"Interesting." Eve remarks and seems to consider what he's saying, a manicured nail taps at her chin and then her demeanor shifts and she seems to relax just a tad. Enough to not be prickly.
"You surely invoke a message with what you're saying, the nature course of our technological evolution." She might be impressed but the devil is in the details, a small victory in the percentage but there are spoils to enjoy.
"We will start with lobster," Eve was going to enjoy this weekend very, very much. "I hope you have a chauffeur for us," It's a deliberate tease, obviously he does.
"I not only have a chauffeur for us, but if you get bored of your hair, makeup, nails, or anything, I have a stylist on standby. I wouldn't have you here for a weekend without reliable people who can take care of your needs." Warren turns to head into the restaurant, holding the door for her. "Rest assured, you will have the time of your life."