The place was a warehouse at some point. Or a workshop, maybe. A drone hive? Who knows. But right now it's a hangout, and a party spot. The music is bone-rattlingly loud bass thumping with distorted voices and screeching guitar over the top. It smells like spilled booze and sweat and smoke. People are making out or passed out on the ratty couches, and the catwalk overhead creaks ominously as those atop it stomp in time. Strobe lights and lasers play over the shouting punk crowd, and a woman with a metal jaw and elaborate goth outfit is using black spray paint to cover the graffiti-covered walls and floor with vaguely demonic words and symbols- Satan, sacrifice, pentagrams, summoning, circles, devil heads, and more.
Phone things for a few minutes.
"There. Flipping this icon on makes it connect to Helix only, turns off everything else for security. It'll take a bit to connect. And then you can call me in the priority contacts in the Helix app- Under Eva Lesear, right here. I didn't put the New York Bank app on here because that would be an unwise security move. Anything can be hacked and stolen if enough angles are exposed."
"So, some final notes. Mrs. Bacon is your best bet for criminal defense particularly, if someone attacks your organization with malicious arrests, but there are probably going to be a dozen other things to take care of. You can contact me whenever you like, consider me on retainer." She pats the bag of jewelry, which jingles slightly. "I'd even be happy to act as a manager or company face if that starts proving frustrating or difficult to hire for. I still don't know anyone I'd recommend trusting with the secret, and telling managers 'sell, sell, sell at rock bottom prices' without the secret might be complicated."
"I already told a couple random people at the hospital. And there are a couple other randos who know."
"I have no idea how likely it is to spread and be believed. You're the one who's assuming risks, there. And I want to emphasize again that I take the confidentiality seriously, I'll keep to it, but I want to do anything and everything I can to remain involved in whatever comes next. It'll be as much a paradigm shift as the industrial revolution or the information age."
"Oh, yeah, I'm going to terraform it and in the meantime we're gonna do a dirigible thing above the cloud layer."
"I suppose it would defeat the purpose to ask you what those steps should be but I don't actually know how to do that."
"I guess I could just conjure your personal correspondence but I don't really like doing that."
"Well, you already know enough to be mightily inconvenient and I think I can pay better than whoever else you're working for."
"Absolutely. Does this universe have any cool personal defense doodads you might like while that's getting sorted out?"
"For personal defense it's mostly escort, support, augmentations. And bullet resistant casual wear. And armored cars. Augs... I already have a biomonitor but there is much more you can add. They take weeks to implant safely though. There are a few smaller but reputable outfits around, mercenary wise. I will do my research and have a pick when you start making money?"