LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 29: The Corporate State
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===[Chapter 29: The Corporate State]===
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“…Provisions have been made to create an area surrounding the Nexus, approximately fifteen kilometers in a circle extending from the outer walls. These lands, included which is the entirety of the coastal city of Canau barred a few suburban outskirts, will be incorporated into official Coalition territory, and by proxy my jurisdiction.”
“Very impressive, Major. Very impressive, however, we have a few… concerns moving forward,” The investor shifted in his seat and cleared his throat, setting a glass of spirits down on the table. The clouds of cold mist already condensing on the surface of the glass. Kovic wondered if his white hair was natural from age, though the investor didn’t look old. Fourty-ish maybe, but no older. Probably dyed white, Kovic figured.
“Anything, Mr. Katsuro.”
“I’m of the impression that a lot of the territory within the jungle is considered sacred ground to the Elves. I hate to bring this up, but if we are going to move forward into establishing enterprise territory – I need assurances that the elves will not be a problem. Rather – the Corporate Board does.”
“Assurances?” Kovic asked bemusedly.
“We need to be sure that our assets won’t be bombed the moment we finish building them. The CEOs on the Board want assurances that the war we’re fighting and the political situation won’t be a burden on production. They want political stability so to speak.”
Kovic smiled, nodding to Katsuro, “Rest assured. Our primary combat teams stand ready for rapid deployment and are prepared to defend the Nexus as well as modern technology permits. The Avonians are giving us some trouble, I’ll admit. But that’s mostly thanks to their magic. From what we could gather, most of the tech on this planet is comparable to what you'd find roughly in the mid-20th century. 1950s, 60s, hell even 70s. We've just had a few of our boys meet up with one of the local factions, they've still got black-and-white TVs running off magic power if you can believe it. We’re lightyears ahead of them as far as tech-to-tech comparisons go. It's their magical powers and our chronic lack of manpower that'll be our biggest issue, but luckily for us we're working on it. As for the elves, they will not be an issue. We've made sure of that.”
“How so?”
“Well, you see, the warrior elves are very – very – simple. They like to make decisions based off emotional ties and spiritual connections. If you give them several alternatives to what they truly desire, they won’t know what to do – so they’ll relinquish it to you. They’re incredibly easy to... uh... persuade in that manner.”
“So, what did you offer them?” Mr. Katsuro asked, leaning in closer. Through his narrow framed glasses, the businessman looked intrigued.
“Guarantees, assurances. We insisted that the price of our alliance was recognition of the Nexus’ sovereignty within the aforementioned fifteen kilometers. They pushed back, asserting that they wanted – get this – they wanted some of our prisoners to be free as they were close friends. You believe that?”
“Wow.”
“And even then, were able to negotiate them down to letting the prisoners out of their stay within solitary confinement. We’ve given them nothing. Yet they believe that they’ve achieved some sort of victory.”
“Smoke and mirrors.”
“That’s all it is.”
Katsuro let a thin smile grow across his narrow face, and he leaned back in his seat as he reached for a glass full of spirits, “That’s certainly good to hear, and the corporate board will be pleased. They want someone as Overseer who’s got a strong knack for –“ Katsuro struggled for a word as he brushed back his silver hair, “Diplomacy. Right. Diplomacy.”
“You’re Chief Executive of a multinational conglomerate, I’m certain you’re well versed in that strategy,” Kovic tried his best to flatter the man.
“Oh of course, that’s all corporate politics really are. Diplomacy,” Mr. Katsuro smiled, smoothing back his white hair as he reclined in the leather chair. He reeked of corporate faux enthusiasm. Just one of the annoyances that High Command sent over to keep an eye on him. To make sure that he was building the vision they desired. Utopia seemed a far-fetched dream with minds such as Mr. Katsuro’s being in charge. But as much as Kovic hated the corporate board and their endless greed, he had to put up with them. At least for now. Utopia could wait. For now, practical matters were at the forefront.
“So… are your fears eased?” Kovic asked the chief executive, who nodded with a brief professional smile.
“Thanks to you, they are. Mining operations should begin soon once the lands are properly secured, and we get our equipment shipped over. Funny you bring up the elves, some of the soldiers remarked that they were beautiful.”
“Perhaps if you can stomach their odor. Sitting across from Ani, I thought I might pass out.”
Mr. Katsuro let out a chuckle, “I like you. We could use someone like you on the board. Let the High Commanders send another one of their officers to be overseer, I can get you out of having to deal with the prisoners. I have a few business partners in Japan and Korea who would love to have you as an American representative.”
“Thank you for the offer, but I’ll respectfully decline. There’s too much here for me to give up, too much at stake. You know?” Kovic frowned as he reclined into the plush softness of his chair. The words came easy, almost as if they were pre-meditated. He could be blunt in this way, and so his hands gestured to the window outside – to the Nexus and to the life that had taken root all around what used to be just a stretch of dirt and a few tents, now a fortress and a proper home for Overwatch in the new world, “Everything you see here is a dream, a brighter future for mankind. You know how Earth is. War… famine… constant shortages…”
“You’re telling me,” Katsuro’s smile dropped for the first time as he sighed, raising the wine glass to his thin lips, “Ever since the 2030s, the whole planet’s gone to hell.”
“But that’s what Utopia is all about, you know? Restarting. Back to square one, but this time with something our ancestors never had. Knowledge and wisdom. We have a real shot to make something profound here. As overseer, I get to build that Utopia. And I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”
Katsuro chuckled lightly as he fixed the glasses on his sharp face, his eyes locked with Kovic’s, “They did call you a visionary in the dossier they sent me. But be careful, there will come a time when your dreams don’t align with what’s necessary. Be pragmatic, but optimistic.”
There was a wad of bile building up in the back of Kovic’s throat. How ironic was it that the man who stood as the antithesis of Kovic’s vision of Utopia, was telling him to put his dreams aside to be pragmatic. Ridiculous.
Kovic forced a smile and nodded his head, “Of course. The Coalition always comes first.”
“Ada boy. Anyways, I believe you’re a man who has things sorted. A right head on his shoulders so to speak. I believe you’ve got the project well under control, and I’ll advise the corporations to greenlight expansion into the enterprise zone. Speaking of…” Katsuro pulled out a massive journal, bound together by a belt but even that didn’t stop pages of notes and letters from spilling out of them. Kovic felt a dreadful feeling encroach on his back, “The Enterprise zone. Let’s talk construction.”
“The Warrior Elves have agreed to the conditions set out by Coalition High Command; we have the power to evict any resident who lives within the enterprise zone should we wish. There shouldn’t be too much resistance, as far as I’m aware it’s only a few farms and villages that belong to them in the area.”
“And what about the other faction? The River Republic?”
“Most of the enterprise zone lies on that side of the border, and seeing that we’re technically in a state of war now, enforcement could prove difficult. However, I’m ready to mobilize our Primary Combat Teams should we need to deal with an attack or insurgency of some sort.”
“And what about the city? Say-naw they called it? Caw-Naw?” Katsuro strained as he tried to pronounce the name of the city, failing, and instead pointing to it with the tip of his pen – scribbled out on the crowded pages of his journal.
“Canau,” Kovic corrected him, “Truth be told we’re not sure what we want to do with it. On one hand we could try incorporating it into the broader Enterprise Zone, but we’re already dealing with enough manpower shortages as is. On the other, we could just keep it under military occupation for the time being and have the elves do all the administrating for us.”
“Right…”
Kovic could sense the hesitation coming from Katsuro’s voice. That’s not what he wanted to hear. The Corporate Board was seeing something that Kovic wasn’t taking advantage of. He had to be more aggressive.
“Alternatively,” Kovic spat out a plan he’d been keeping somewhere in the back of his mind, yet had always hesitated to share for fear of the potential repercussions. Katsuro looked up, suddenly interested.
“Yes?”
“We could go ahead with integrating Canau into the Enterprise Zone. It’s a city with at least ten thousand people inside. We’d be able to put most of them to work so long as I’m guaranteed that more industry from Earth actually gets moved here. It’d be an ample opportunity to wean The Nexus off of prison labor for good, at least before the colonists arrive. And… it could make a hell of a profit.”
And like that, Katsuro’s face lit up. He could smell money in the deal, and like a good businessman, he wanted nothing else, “Perfect,” Katsuro scribbled something down on what little free space there was on the crowded paper, though his face was expressionless. When he was done scribbling, he flipped over to a page all the way at the front of the journal, reading from it, “If I can secure a greenlight from the board, there will be four corporate entities who will move into the Zone. BP, Ford, General Electric, and my own Sony Electronics. Each of them will create a subsidiary company that will be merged into one conglomerate - name still up for debate - that will allow the companies to operate here without fear of discovery in planet Narva. All for secrecy’s sake.”
Kovic frowned, “None of these companies are military contractors as far as I know… what business do they have in Narva?”
“Well at Sony, we’re aware of a certain resource that could make the manufacturing of our semiconductors both far easier and cheaper overall. General Electric has their hands in a lot of pockets. You’d be surprised. BP should be self-explanatory, they’re masters at resource extraction. As for Ford, I’m not sure. They’re Americans, you should have an easy time picking their brain. But regardless, all the corporations represented on the board have contributed something to the construction of the portal. We provided the computer chips, digital equipment, silicon technology, superconductors. Ford, and BP financed it, billions of dollars. General Electric built the portal with their engineers. It goes on and on. It was a collaborative effort.”
“Scary what can get done when sharks smell blood in the water,” Kovic’s offhand comment made Katsuro look somewhat weary.
“There’s a lot to be found on this planet, Overseer, and we want to secure our investments. It would only be wise.”
Kovic nodded, “And this new conglomerate. Who’ll be running the thing?”
“That’s up for the corporate board to vote on. I’ll be throwing my hat in the race since I’m already the chief representative. If I can get at the head, I’m sure I’ll be able to get the rest of the board cooperative with your more visionary plans. In fact, the more I think about it, the more I happen to agree with you.”
“That’ll make two of us,” It was Kovic’s turn now to lean in, “I'm being completely honest when I say that we have a real chance of making something truly amazing here. Building something new. Something better than what we’ve got on Earth. I just need the cooperation of the companies, the military, and of course the High Commanders.”
“As long as we keep meeting our growth targets and expectations, I see no reason for our relationship to sour.”
“Cheers,” Kovic raised a glass with the two clinking mid-air.
The two men rose from their luxurious chairs, leaning in to shake hands. A few pleasantries were exchanged, and guards escorted the businessman to a more luxurious suite where he’d be spending the night in a faraway fantasy land. Perhaps even given a once-in-a-lifetime tour sponsored by the Coalition, where he’d get to see all the local wildlife and exotic beasts that inhabited the territory secured by Kovic’s forces. Perhaps that would be yet another area of venture capitalism to exploit, sending over the rich tourists to come and gawk at whatever it was they found so interesting on this rotten awful planet. Making a theme park out of this horrid jungle. The Elves would certainly hate the idea, but who cared about what they had to say? As Kovic did in his negotiations with Ani, he would simply do again. And if he kept in good standing with the army, he’d have the force behind him.
As for Kovic himself, he watched the businessman leave the office room. His pleasant smile vanished the moment the door closed behind the well-dressed man. It wasn't just that Mr. Katsuro was a businessman - and Kovic loathed businessmen. He'd spent enough time around Wall Street in the days before the coup to know that the likes of Katsuro represented some of the most obnoxious, money-hungry, brain dead, "individuals" on Planet Earth. And - as if the universe was making some kind of great cosmic comedy sketch - They were the people who made the world turn. Utopia wouldn't need them. Predators like Katsuro ran contrary to the social order of any society, and their rot of greed and corruption couldn't be allowed to spread. And yet, he needed them still. The Overwatch Commanders were joined at their hip, and if he didn't satisfy the Corporate Board... there would be eyebrows raised from people Kovic couldn't afford to lose.
Perhaps then, it was the fact that they reminded him of just how mortal he truly was in the Overseer's chair which made him detest Katsuro so much. Kovic may have been the man responsible for running the place, but as far as anyone of importance was concerned - that was it. He was a man surrounded with clowns to the left, jokers to the right, frauds and anti-Utopians in front and behind him. Like a man straddling on to a lifeboat in the middle of shark infested waters, Kovic too was a man stranded. One wrong step, and he'd be good as dead. Overwatch could replace him with someone they thought aligned with their vision at any moment, the army could overthrow him and turn The Nexus into a glorified military bunker. As the influence of the Corporate Board grows, as more resources were shipped back to Earth to make some sort of economy for The Nexus, The Corporate Board too would become a critical lifeline for him, and if he lost their support - The Nexus would surely die. And then there were those damn Phantoms...
Everywhere he looked there was danger. And Mr. Katsuro was only the tip of the iceberg. He rubbed his hand against a handkerchief in disgust, turning to a secretary not too far away.
“Get the announcement system ready. I want to make an address.”
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==[WHAT A TANGLED WEB WE WEAVE]==
Building a Utopia is no easy task, and despite what some naysayers might believe, Major Kovic doesn’t exactly have complete and absolute authority over what can be done inside of the Nexus. Instead, Major Kovic must play a Great Game in order to maintain a balancing act between the major factions that dominate the Nexus. As it is, there are six major factions that Kovic must keep in line in order to make progress on his dreams of Utopia - either by appeasing them, or by silencing them...
[Kovic’s Administration] Is the most obvious. This is Kovic’s personal cohort of bureaucrats, administrators, and staff who work tirelessly to achieve his personal vision of Utopia and to fulfill Kovic’s orders. Without the Administration, Kovic is but a mere man. Kovic’s Administration runs off of Cohesion - which is a measure of how stable the administration is, The Administration's ability to operate The Nexus without disruption, and how well it can implement Kovic's dreams for a Utopia. Kovic’s Administration Starts with a base of 100 Cohesion. The higher this number gets, the greater control Kovic has over the Nexus and the easier he can get his job done. However, if this number hits 0, this will be a sign that something has gone horrifically wrong in The Nexus leaving only chaos in Utopia’s wake.
[Overwatch Command] Represents the demands of the Earthbound Coalition High Commanders. While in practice Overwatch Command represents the body of Kovic's officers in charge of issuing orders to soldiers and prisoners; tasking fire support; and maintaining daily operations; in The Great Game - Overwatch represents Kovic’s superiors. Overwatch has a Satisfaction mechanic, with their base level of Satisfaction set at 100. Satisfaction represents The High Commander’s approval of Kovic’s job and their willingness to dispatch additional resources to help the Nexus grow and keep Kovic in power. If this number reaches 200, Kovic will have near complete access to Overwatch’s granted powers and a near unlimited supply of Earthbound resources. But if this number reaches 0, Overwatch will fire Kovic and replace him with a new and more loyal Commander... unless Kovic resists and keeps himself in power by force...
[The Armed Forces] Are the combined Primary Combat Teams and Security Units of The Nexus as well as any Phantoms assigned to combat duties. The Armed Forces are the sword and shield of Kovic’s Administration, in charge of fighting the Administration’s enemies (Which ranges from rebellious Phantoms, to The Avonian Empire, to an Angry Overwatch Command) and keeping the peace. They operate on a Trust mechanic, with trust representing how much the Armed Forces are willing to obey The Administration’s rule. They start with a base of +50 trust. The closer it gets to 200, the more absolute Kovic’s rule over the armed forces becomes. If the number reaches 0, this represents apathy to the administration, meaning the Armed Forces will refuse to take orders from The Administration if they feel it conflicts with orders sent from Overwatch Command. Worse yet, if Trust reaches into the negatives, this means that The Armed Forces are actively plotting to work against Kovic - perhaps to force him out in a coup.
[The Corporate Board] Is the lifeblood of The Utopia Project. These are the Corporations, Investors, and major sources of economic activity for The Nexus. Securing the Corporate Board is crucial as their investments into The Nexus will allow the creation of a self-sustainable local economy as industry moves from Earth to Planet Narva. The Corporate Board operates off of the Confidence mechanic, with confidence representing how much faith the Corporate Board has in Kovic’s ability to maintain stability for their economic growth. The higher this number gets, the more willing the Board is to invest into The Nexus, with 200 Confidence representing a thriving Corporate sector full of free trade between worlds and corporate investments into The Nexus. But if this number reaches 0, The Corporate Board loses confidence in the stability or survival of The Nexus and will begin to pull funding - a crucial blow to Kovic’s Achilles heel.
[The Headhunters] Are the Elite Forces of The Administration, and they represent a major secret police and paramilitary force that is necessary for keeping order among the factions. They are extremely well trained, equipped, and powerful. Perhaps the most powerful tool in Kovic’s arsenal in case things get out of hand. Yet, it is precisely their power that makes them among the largest threats to Kovic’s Administration. Luckily, due to the nature of The Headhunter’s Organization, they are also the most loyal. Operating off of a Loyalty mechanic, The Headhunters are the only faction in the game to start with a base of 200 Loyalty, however it cannot grow past 200. It is necessary to maintain the Headhunters’ loyalty, for if the number reaches 0, The Administration will find itself faced against an extremely dangerous opponent.
[The Phantoms] Prisoners. Penal-Unit. Slaves. Expendables. Call them what you want to, they are the work horses of the entire operation. They work to build The Nexus and can be ordered to fight. Poorly trained and equipped, they are weak individually, yet due to their massive numbers they represent a substantiative threat to The Administration. Due to their status as prisoners and slaves, it is very easy for them to get too rowdy. This means that The Phantoms have two mechanics, the first being Stability - which represents the amount of control The Administration has over them starting at a base of 50. The other mechanic is anger - a measure of how radical the Phantoms are getting. The higher their anger, the more disobedient the Phantoms will become, turning to extreme measure to achieve their freedom, especially in times of crisis. This number can reach 200, with a max anger level meaning that the Phantoms are ready to burn everything to the ground and murder everyone with their assigned tools if Kovic’s control slips. Luckily, to reinforce control, Kovic has a number of tools at his disposal. From executions, to solitary confinement, to straight up mass purges. However, all of these acts will cause Overwatch Command to lose confidence as they will have to reinforce our numbers with their strained manpower pools. And the Corporate Board will be drained of free manpower to work in their factories...
==[THE BALANCE OF POWER]==
Kovic may be able to talk at great length to his penal-unit slaves of how great his Utopia will be for them. He can try his hardest to convince his superiors that his dreams of Utopia are not only possible, but also align with their dreams of a colony on a new world. He may say all of these things, outwardly, with all the passion he can muster. But ultimately, he will be shouting into the wind if he doesn't answer one question: What exactly is Utopia? And for who does The Nexus serve?
The State Of Our Utopia is the culmination of everything learned in The Great Game. It is a measure of which side Utopia leans. Overwatch and Kovic both diverge in terms of what they truly want to achieve on Planet Narva. Overwatch's End Game will be a colonial stronghold, one that can act as both a profit generator by shipping crucial resources back to Earth and one that can ensure the survival and longevity of Earth's Elite class and Government Institutions by remaining as a proxy for them to relocate to in case things on Earth manage to get worse...
Kovic's vision of Utopia is different. He imagines a perfect, sterile, world. One in which The State rules all in perfect symbiosis with the Armed Forces and Technology to create a "purified" mankind - free of the vices Kovic sees as plaguing Earth's cultures and institutions rotten. Kovic envisions a world where everything exists to serve the State, and where the state guides humanity's natural supremacy across the stars...
Whether Overwatch Command's "Pragmatic" or Kovic's "Utopian" vision for The Nexus will emerge supreme in The Great Game - is ultimately decided here in The State of Our Utopia. Every action made, every word spoken, every faction won over, and every voice of dissent silenced, will ultimately shape what Utopia will look like. Whether it's a glorified penal colony on another world, or something more akin to the darkest regimes of The Early 20th Century...
==[MONEY TALKS]==
Money talks. People listen. If Kovic has any intention at all of building a Utopian world that he can control, he must first learn how to control The Corporate Board. The Utopia Project revolves around money, and one of his primary orders from High Command is to create a modestly self-sufficient economy. It is true, even in his world of a Utopia, money will remain king. Despite his hatred of capitalism, believing it to be the primary driver of The Resource Wars and the downfall of Earth, Kovic needs The Corporations if Utopia is to survive.
However, this does not mean that he is beholden to Corporate rule. In fact, quite the opposite. As The Nexus and The Enterprise Zone grows, The Board itself will evolve with Kovic having a unique opportunity to play the various differing factions within against each other to best suit his rule. Each faction, The Americans, The Europeans, The Japanese, And The Minors - all have differing tolerance and vision of what Utopia will be. Depending on which faction (or coalition of factions) emerges supreme, the Corporate Board's relationship with The Administration's agenda will be altered. Winning the support of any faction, or ensuring that a specific faction emerges as the most powerful, will be crucial for The Administration's goals. And as time goes on, The Voting Floor itself will have the powerful to shape what The Enterprise Zone actually looks like...
==[DIRECT IMAGE LINKS FOR CLEARER RESOLUTION]==
>>>[TO BUILD A UTOPIA]
>>>[THE STATE OF OUR UTOPIA]
>>>[NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS, THE MONEY MUST FLOW]
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