Acta Non Verba Corp

-9:08 AM, July 8th, 2054-

-270 Park Avenue, Manhattan, NY-

I once again found myself asking how life has led to this point. What was even happening?

I didn't get to think to myself for long. The car door clicked and was pulled open.

I moved my hand to shield my eyes from the bright morning light. After a few seconds my eyes adjusted. Outside, Tucker, the man who saved me from the Russians, was standing next to the SUV. He was hearing body armor over a collared shirt. He was flanked by armed guards in similar attire.

Tucker held out a holstered Glock and a few magazines towards me. "Just in case, sir."

I sighed and placed my suit jacket on his outstretched arm. I then undid my belt and slid it through the holster on my right side. I then re-buckled my belt and took my jacket back from Tucker. I put it on and then grabbed the magazines, placing them in the pockets on the inside of the jacket. "What are we doing here exactly?"

My aunt, Susan, emerged from around the SUV and started walking towards the entrance. "As I said, we have some business to attend to. Gavin is already inside."

I glanced down at myself and admired how well this brand-new suit fit me. It was nothing if not perfect. It was literally custom made for me overnight as we traveled. "I see."

I quickly came to the conclusion that this was guild business. On paper, Gavin and myself each own 45% of the guild. The other 10% is held by Abyss Capital, a division of Berkshire. I wasn't quite sure why we were at a bank though. Also, this wasn't just any bank, but the biggest private bank in the world.

By the time I finished that thought, we had entered the lobby. Our security team came with us, quickly establishing a perimeter.

Inside, I found Galen and Skylar in the lobby. They were speaking to an older woman that had someone standing obediently behind her. Presumably we were here to see her.

She had light brown hair that hung down to her nape. Her white skin was slightly wrinkled but barely noticeable. She had a sharp expression with soft hazel eyes that appeared to hide many things behind them.

I watched her eyes light up as she turned to us. "Susan! It's been far too long."

Susan chuckled and shook her head. "Lola, it's only been a few months."

They briefly hugged as Lola replied. "You're much more fun than my usual friends. Bankers are annoyingly stiff and boring so it felt like it was much longer."

I coughed, not believing what I was hearing. "Her? Aunt Susan? Fun?"

Lola giggled mischievously. "You don't even know half of it. One time in Aruba-"

Susan cut her off with a stiff expression. "Nope, not that one."

Lola pouted slightly. "Ughhh, fine. Anyways, you must be Kyle."

I nodded slowly, trying to grasp the dynamic between them. "I am."

Lola smiled. "Wonderful. I'm Lola Rivers, VP of Corporate Banking for North America. It's great to finally meet you." She held out her hand.

I smiled and shook her hand. "You as well."

She had a deceptively firm grip. Was this a test?

She released my hand and gestured towards the elevators behind a security gate. "Let's head upstairs. The basic documents have already been prepared. A few of the pups can come but I ask that you leave the rest in the lobby."

I glanced towards Tucker and nodded. He waved a few times and most of the team dispersed around the lobby. Tucker remained with us.

Lola began walking so I followed behind her with the rest of our group. We followed her into the elevator. I shifted past everyone and situated myself in the corner. I then closed my eyes and breathed slowly.

My mind cleared and I opened the door to the force. Feelings of anxiety and stress washed over me. They masked hints of relief and satisfaction. Was this what a corporate environment feels like? It was much softer than the emotions I had become used to lately.

I sighed internally. What had I become? All I knew by then was the battlefield.

The elevator dinged, followed by the doors sliding open. Tucker and the other guards quickly filed out. After a few seconds, Tucker called out. "Clear."

Our group then exited the elevator. I quickly noticed a receptionist eyeing us suspiciously. There was clear and intense anxiety in her eyes.

Lola chuckled. "Harriet don't worry. The guns aren't for us."

She visibly relaxed and went back to working on whatever she was doing.

We walked down the hall about 50 feet before entering a windowed conference room on the left side. On the far side of the room was a long wall of windows. Both long sides of the rectangular room were entirely made of glass. It was quite aesthetic. Hopefully the design of our Coruscant headquarters will look this good.

I relaxedly walked through the room and stopped in front of the windows. Wow… What a view. I could see the entirety of Central Park.

Suddenly, tactical plans starting flashing through my head. Every possible angle of attack and the proper course of action was quickly accounted for.

Lola then spoke, snapping me out of my daze. "Let's get started, shall we?"

I turned around to see Susan nod. "We shall."

Everyone quickly took their seats. I sat next to Galen. My aunt sat on the other side of me with Skylar sitting next to her. On the other side of the table was Lola, the young woman that was with her in the lobby, and two middle aged men.

Lola started by sliding a folder to each of Gavin, Susan, and myself. Susan slid the folder to Skylar, clearly not caring to do anything with it.

Lola noticed this and chuckled. "Out of practice with this type of thing?"

Susan shrugged. "It's been a while. Regardless of that, this is under his purview."

Lola nodded. "Very well. From what I understand, ownership is split between the three parties present, yes?"

I nodded, gesturing towards each party. "Yep. It's split 45/45/10."

Lola nodded and then gestured towards the man directly next to her. "This is Steven. He's an attorney that will handle the legal stuff which I doubt any of you want to hear since you didn't even bother bringing a lawyer."

Skylar shrugged. "I've enough experience with contracts and all this stuff. No worries."

Gavin suddenly cleared his throat. "Actually, I passed the Massachusetts BAR in the Spring."

I blinked slowly as I turned to my left, resting my dumbstricken gaze upon the man. "You what now?"

Gavin nodded casually. "Yeah. I was gonna play for a few months before starting work. I had a job lined up and everything. Well, you can see how that turned out." He gestured towards the folder in front of him.

I was still shocked. "You? A lawyer?"

Gavin rolled his eyes and turned away from me. "Whatever. We can have this conversation later." He locked eyes with Steven. "Steven, good to meet you. I'm Gavin Jameson. I'll be handling the 'legal stuff'." He did air quotes and accentuated his words when he said "legal stuff".

He opened the folder and pulled a pen from his jacket. "I presume you've prepared standard Partnership Agreements, Articles of Incorporation, a Certificate of Authority Application, an Apostille, the various tax forms, and a Trademark Application?"

I heard Susan whistle and Skyle chuckle. Clearly they were both deeply impressed.

On the other hand, I was still stuck. I was seething at the idiot turned genius next to me. "The fuck is an Apostille?"