Kane was entirely at ease in front of Lawrence. He pulled out a chair opposite the Director and sat down with a smirk.
"C'mon, Boss. I had a hell of a time tracking down that newspaper. They were supposed to run a weekly edition, but they did a full redesign and reprint the very next morning."
"Kane, you know I don't like riddles." Lawrence put the paper aside. It was common for powerful figures to suppress embarrassing reports; that was just how the world turned.
"Fine. Take a look at this, and I bet you won't be this calm." Kane pulled a clearly tampered envelope from his pocket, looking mysterious.
"What is this?" Despite his impatience, Lawrence reached for it. The envelope was thin, containing only a few photos and a technical briefing. Lawrence opened it and began to read carefully.
"Before Karl died, he met with a CIA team," Kane leaned forward, lowering his voice. "According to Karl's testimony, those 'miracle' technologies the Aura Group released... they came from a 'silent partner' he was working with."
"The CIA hadn't identified who it was before Karl was allegedly 'silenced.' But they have a suspicion. Ever since the Aura Group cleared their initial product launch crisis, they've been shipping massive amounts of hardware to a specific spot in Alaska..."
Kane had a friend working for the CIA—the very man tasked with being Karl's handler. Before Karl's death, the Agency hadn't stalled on his demands because they were hard to meet, but because they were busy reverse-engineering the tech in the Aura Group's phones.
The result? Their analysts concluded that current human manufacturing couldn't even satisfy the evolutionary path of those designs. In other words, the tech didn't belong in this era. It's one thing for a baby to start walking; it's another for it to suddenly sprout wings and fly.
Lawrence's expression turned grim as he picked up the photos.
"That," Kane pointed, "is the current President of the Aura Group, Alice."
"No one knows where she came from. All we know is that the moment she arrived, all of the group's legal and technical hurdles vanished. They entered a phase of hyper-growth."
The photo was a candid spy shot, but it didn't hide the subject's striking, lethal beauty.
"I see..." Lawrence flipped through the pages, a cold realization dawning on him. "Interesting. Extremely interesting."
"It's exactly what you're thinking, Boss," Kane nodded. "The CIA thinks so too. They haven't leaked this yet, and it looks like they're already moving to intercept."
"Hmph," Lawrence scoffed. Attempting to snatch a prize from NEST? The CIA wasn't in their league. "Kane, does Lennox know about this?"
"No," Kane shook his head.
"Excellent!" A wide, predatory grin spread across Lawrence's face, his eyes flashing with excitement. "In that case, in the name of the Department of Defense's Security Bureau, book me a meeting with our 'brilliant' female CEO..."
Miami. Aura Group Headquarters.
Jelina knocked and hurried into Alice's executive office. Since Alice had taken over, she had dissolved the old "Secretary Pool" and replaced it with a streamlined Executive Office of Presidential Assistants. Interestingly, Jelina—Karl's former personal secretary—was the only one Alice kept, promoting her to manager of the office.
"Miss Alice, we have a meeting request from the Security Bureau."
Though she was the President, Alice preferred her original title among the staff. "A meeting with the Bureau? For when?"
"They didn't specify a time. They just said 'the sooner, the better'."
Jelina looked nervous. They were just a tech company; why were state security agencies knocking on their door? Alice, by contrast, was perfectly composed.
"I see..." Alice glanced at her luxury watch. "Tell them two hours. I have a board meeting to attend first."
Once Jelina left, Alice stood up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing into the distance. "So, they finally noticed..."
She shook her head slightly and spoke to the seemingly empty space beside her. "No need to strike. I've already informed the Master. He wants us to see what they're after."
At 10:00 AM, two men in sharp suits entered the Aura Group lobby. Jelina was already waiting.
"Director Lawrence? Director Kane?"
Lawrence surveyed the massive commercial tower. "I'm Lawrence. Lead the way." He had no interest in small talk with subordinates.
Jelina guided them to the private elevator, heading straight for the penthouse.
"Good morning, beautiful," Lawrence greeted with practiced charm as they entered the office.
Alice remained seated behind her desk, her eyes calm and cold. She made no move to stand. Lawrence didn't seem embarrassed; he sat on the sofa and leaned forward. "Miss Alice, let's skip the pleasantries."
"I want a meeting with the person behind you," Lawrence stared at her, enunciating every word. "That. Decepticon."
There were only two alien factions on Earth. The Autobots were under NEST's thumb and refused to share tech. The conclusion was obvious: the Aura Group was backed by a Decepticon.
Despite Lawrence exposing her biggest secret, Alice didn't blink. Lawrence felt a surge of irritation. "Miss Alice, tell that Decepticon the time and place can be his choice. I just hope he shows up on—"
"Why do you wish to see me?"
The voice didn't come from Alice. It came from nowhere. As Lawrence and Kane froze, the air in the center of the room distorted.
In the blink of an eye, a massive mechanical panther materialized right in front of them.
"Whoa!!" Lawrence nearly leaped off the sofa in fright.
Kane scrambled to pull a 9mm pistol from his holster, aiming it with trembling hands at the beast. They never expected a Decepticon to be sitting right in the middle of a corporate office.
"Should I call for backup?" Kane hissed, his hands shaking violently. He knew a handgun wasn't going to do much to several tons of alien alloy.
"No, Kane! Put the gun down!" Lawrence gasped, forcing himself to breathe. He had spent enough time around the Autobots to know that if the machine wanted them dead, they would already be scrap. He hadn't brought a NEST strike team because he thought this was a standard interrogation.
"Sit," Alice said calmly. "He won't harm you."
Lawrence stared at Alice, then turned his gaze to the machine. "You're... the one who was with Skygnaw? The one from the Sector Seven raid?"
"You asked for a meeting," Black Panther rumbled. His eyes flickered with a dull, flat light, as if he were merely relaying a broadcast.
"Right... yes!" Lawrence pushed aside his fear. "I want to know if the technology Aura Group uses was provided by your faction."
"Gentlemen, the fact that you are here suggests you already have the answer," Alice interjected.
Lawrence ignored her, focusing entirely on the beast. "Is it?"
"Yes," Black Panther nodded.
"Yes!" Lawrence exchanged a look of triumph with Kane. "Mr. Decepticon... your appearance wasn't in my plan, but since you're here... I have a proposal. A very important one. Can you make decisions for your group?"
"Wait," Black Panther said. The dull light in his eyes vanished.
Zzt—
A holographic projector in the panther's chest activated, casting a shimmering image into the air. A terrifying, jagged mechanical head appeared—Skygnaw.
Having received the alert from Alice, Skygnaw had decided to see what these NEST bureaucrats wanted. He sensed a potential "unexpected harvest."
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