on your property was the high point. Lilly. Lilly Miyamoto. There was something about her frank gaze, her unnerving sense of presence and practicality. Huian couldn’t help but find her fascinating. Her leather jacket, tank top, gray canvas pants, and boots were all very worn, but of high-quality manufacture. Thick black-framed glasses slightly enlarged her eyes. She looked like some kind of cyberpunk nomad with an aversion to technology. Or maybe she had found her entire wardrobe at the estate sale of a 1940 s-era archaeologist.
Regardless, Lilly was… different. Different from the industrious engineers, scheming attorneys, and ambitious businesspeople who made up Huian’s social circle. To be honest, her social circle had an embarrassingly large overlap with her professional circle, which meant Cumulus.
That was one of the things that had frustrated Vera. She had always complained that Huian conflated her personal and professional lives. But that was because, even after years of living together, Vera still failed to understand how important Huian’s mission was. The level of commitment required didn’t leave room for fluffy concepts like work/life balance. Huian’s calling wasn’t a hobbyist fascination with macramé. Technology was the only scalable tool available to help shape a better future. The question was whether people chose to participate in that future or not. Huian was a harbinger of that new reality. She would stop at nothing to push forward the inexorable, beautiful, conflicted locomotive of human civilization. Dystopias were the province of the undisciplined.
Unfortunately, success created its own problems. It made Cumulus a prime target for competitors, regulators, foreign governments, hackers, press, and activist investors. They’d grown too big not to become ensnarled in internal politics as well. Huian had to constantly question whether her executive team was working to advance the company or just their own careers. Sometimes it was difficult to tell whether so-called friends were interested in her or just her money. That’s why she had agreed to create the Ghost Program with Graham, to separate allies from enemies and protect Cumulus’s legacy. It was fucking hard. But fucking-hard problems were the only ones worth solving. History would be the judge.
Huian realized she was clenching her fists. Vera wanted more spontaneity? Inviting a trespassing photographer in for a drink was definitely a start. Not even Dr. Corvel could argue with that. Now all Huian had to do was figure out how to navigate Cumulus through turbulent seas and try to salvage her marriage at the same time.
“Ma’am?”
Huian shook her head, roping herself back from reverie.
“I’ve got Karl Dieter on the line.”
Karl was the Cumulus VP who ran the Security division. He had been CEO of Security when Cumulus acquired it, and Huian had kept him on as the operating executive. Karl was gruff, efficient, and aggressive, which was probably why they got along well. His passion for vintage arcade games was beyond anything Huian had ever seen. Whenever they talked, she couldn’t help but remember his basement lair that was packed to the brim with ancient pinball machines. Karl was consistent, but he didn’t go beyond the call of duty like Graham did. He didn’t think outside the box.
“Put him through,” she said and heard the line switch over.
“Ma’am, we may have a situation,” said Karl in his deep baritone. He wasn’t one for small talk, another reason she liked him.
“What’s up?” She rubbed her hands together slowly. Her palms were raw from spending hour after hour shooting last night. Tiny blisters were forming on the pads of her fingers. She hadn’t played basketball for far too long.
“You told me to keep you in the loop about out-of-the-ordinary public safety situations.”
“I remember.”
“Well, to be honest, I’m not sure if this will amount to anything, but we have a crowd of a few
Regardless, Lilly was… different. Different from the industrious engineers, scheming attorneys, and ambitious businesspeople who made up Huian’s social circle. To be honest, her social circle had an embarrassingly large overlap with her professional circle, which meant Cumulus.
That was one of the things that had frustrated Vera. She had always complained that Huian conflated her personal and professional lives. But that was because, even after years of living together, Vera still failed to understand how important Huian’s mission was. The level of commitment required didn’t leave room for fluffy concepts like work/life balance. Huian’s calling wasn’t a hobbyist fascination with macramé. Technology was the only scalable tool available to help shape a better future. The question was whether people chose to participate in that future or not. Huian was a harbinger of that new reality. She would stop at nothing to push forward the inexorable, beautiful, conflicted locomotive of human civilization. Dystopias were the province of the undisciplined.
Unfortunately, success created its own problems. It made Cumulus a prime target for competitors, regulators, foreign governments, hackers, press, and activist investors. They’d grown too big not to become ensnarled in internal politics as well. Huian had to constantly question whether her executive team was working to advance the company or just their own careers. Sometimes it was difficult to tell whether so-called friends were interested in her or just her money. That’s why she had agreed to create the Ghost Program with Graham, to separate allies from enemies and protect Cumulus’s legacy. It was fucking hard. But fucking-hard problems were the only ones worth solving. History would be the judge.
Huian realized she was clenching her fists. Vera wanted more spontaneity? Inviting a trespassing photographer in for a drink was definitely a start. Not even Dr. Corvel could argue with that. Now all Huian had to do was figure out how to navigate Cumulus through turbulent seas and try to salvage her marriage at the same time.
“Ma’am?”
Huian shook her head, roping herself back from reverie.
“I’ve got Karl Dieter on the line.”
Karl was the Cumulus VP who ran the Security division. He had been CEO of Security when Cumulus acquired it, and Huian had kept him on as the operating executive. Karl was gruff, efficient, and aggressive, which was probably why they got along well. His passion for vintage arcade games was beyond anything Huian had ever seen. Whenever they talked, she couldn’t help but remember his basement lair that was packed to the brim with ancient pinball machines. Karl was consistent, but he didn’t go beyond the call of duty like Graham did. He didn’t think outside the box.
“Put him through,” she said and heard the line switch over.
“Ma’am, we may have a situation,” said Karl in his deep baritone. He wasn’t one for small talk, another reason she liked him.
“What’s up?” She rubbed her hands together slowly. Her palms were raw from spending hour after hour shooting last night. Tiny blisters were forming on the pads of her fingers. She hadn’t played basketball for far too long.
“You told me to keep you in the loop about out-of-the-ordinary public safety situations.”
“I remember.”
“Well, to be honest, I’m not sure if this will amount to anything, but we have a crowd of a few
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