2023-09-21 01:00:38Rachael Richardson was a logistics manager at the Amazon headquarters in Seattle, Washington. Currently, she was sitting in her office reviewing some paperwork.
Her cell phone rang and a jolt passed down her spine, then she reached in her purse to grab it. Her heart was pounding and her hands shook so bad that, after she got the phone out, she fumbled it and it dropped to the floor. Coincidentally, the phone landed face up and she saw the name of the caller on the display.Her face paled and she scrambled out of her chair, then got on her hands and knees and picked up the phone, hitting the button to answer it as fast as she could."H-hello?" she breathlessly said."The phone rang more than once.""S-s-sorry... I dropped it when I was picking it up."The voice on the other side of the call was silent for some time, then it said, "Don't let it happen again.""I won't," Rachel said, an obvious quiver in her voice."I'll be home at 7:30. I want g
Previous Chapter
Related Chapters
Getting a Technology System in Modern Day An Offer They Shouldn't Refuse
Back in the office, Sarah and Felix had just finished reading through the five profiles Aron had shortlisted from Nova's master list. The rest of the names on the list would also receive job offers, but the five names on the short list were slated to be the presidents of the new subsidiary companies.Robert Watson, a low-level Boeing executive, would be joining Icarus Airlines as the president.Ryan Walker would be heading up Asclepius Biotechnology, where his experience and connections in the world of Big Pharma would come in handy. And, having been a researcher himself, he wouldn't just be an "empty suit" executive, either.Hermes Inc., Aron's new import/export company, was just waiting for the arrival of Rachael Richardson. She should be able to simply slot into the job, having run the logistics department of a giant like Amazon.Elizabeth Oppliger would soon be heading up Helios Energy & Utilities. She didn't know it yet, but she would soon.And Jai Chakrabarti would soon be takin
Getting a Technology System in Modern Day I Agree
"Welcome, and thank you all for accepting the invitation." Aron appeared in front of the group of people who were still wondering where they were and how they got there. They had no idea of what was going on at all.The moment they noticed Aron's appearance in the room with them, they were so surprised that some of them even jumped out of their seats."Sorry about that," Aron said moments after Nova teleported them back to their chair. At the same time, she was generating a calming effect in their virtual minds."Was that magic?" "How'd we get here?" "Where is this place?" "Why can I walk?" "Where's my wife?" The moment they calmed down, they started shooting question after question at Aron, who remained quiet throughout the interrogation. Nova tracked the questions being asked and organized them in descending order of importance for Aron to answer when the people in front of him ran out of questions to ask. Soon, they realized that Aron hadn't said anything in response and fell
Getting a Technology System in Modern Day The First of Many
Two weeks later.Aron was standing in the middle of Avalon Island with Rina, Felix, Sarah, his parents, and Alexander in a glass building that was strong enough to face a bomb head on and receive only a few scratches.The new presidents were also in attendance, but only in VR. They couldn't attend in person yet, as they were still inside the pods receiving their genetic enhancements and treatments, which wouldn't end until a few days later. It had only been three days since they'd started receiving the enhancements; it had taken a full week and a half to settle their grievances as Aron had promised.As the people in the room watched through the wall, a sound started coming through the speakers. "T minus ten minutes. All systems are currently go and weather conditions are favorable for liftoff. Please remain in a safe viewing area.""Wow," Henry said as he gazed at the massive rocket on the other side of the wall.A few kilometers away from the room, a massive rocket was at rest on a l
Getting a Technology System in Modern Day All His Stuff is There
The launch wasn't secret at all, since it was being broadcasted live for anyone interested in watching it. At the moment, that consisted of a few rocket science fans who tuned in, but most of the watchers were the Edenian citizens themselves. They were absolutely thrilled to watch their first domestically made launch take place. A good example of how huge the interest to the launch was for the citizens of the country was that the launch was being broadcast through nearly all of the domestic news channels, which all had a higher viewership than their usual average for that specific time.Although they hadn't been planning on keeping it a secret, they still hadn't planned to announce it, but that idea was squashed as the news of them applying for more than fifty orbital spots was leaked by someone from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU).They'd had to apply, because first, it was required to be given a specific band of frequencies that weren't yet used in those orbits. Tha
Getting a Technology System in Modern Day True Neutrality
News of the successful series of launches had spread everywhere. And after more than two weeks straight of successful launches, they had finally come to an end. There were now fifty satellites in various orbits, from low earth orbit all the way to high earth geosynchronous orbit, and all of them were dedicated to serving Aron's growing conglomerate..Together with the news, Nova kicked things up into a higher gear and started promoting the upcoming product launch all over Pangea. The data they had already collected from users of the app ensured that the advertising blitz was as laser targeted as she could make it. And even though people were only seeing ads they were interested in, it still spread out to catch any their lists might have missed, as people—and interaction bots—were all talking about what they had seen. Fans of GAIA Tech were already excited and had marked their calendars; the launch event was set for a week after the launches finished.Togeth
Getting a Technology System in Modern Day Zeus One
February 15th.As evening neared in Eden, one of the largest indoor auditoriums in the country was filled to the brim. The entire venue was sold out and people had already arrived, filling every available seat despite the launch event still being a few hours away.Outside the auditorium, but still inside the building, people were walking around and talking to each other. For anyone interested in the international tech industry, they would realize that most of the people there were famous names in the tech industry, showing the level of the event that was about to take place.As for the influencers, no one that had received the invitation even thought of declining to attend. But it wasn't just an invitation they had received; everyone that had received one had also been given a business-class ticket on whichever day they would like to arrive in Eden. Room and board were included as well, up until the day after the launch event concluded. That in itself showed tha
Getting a Technology System in Modern Day Unbelievable Advances
"Now on to the screen," Aron said as the screens behind him focused on the phone's screen. Unlike the most recent iPhone, or any of the Android and Google phones on the market, the bezel around the screen was so unbelievably thin that it was practically invisible.(Ed note: I had to look bezel up, too. In this context, it's "a groove or flange designed to hold a beveled edge, as of a gem." Basically, it's the border between the screen and frame of a computer or a phone monitor.)"The Zeus One's screen will revolutionize the way you see the screen, thanks to our quantum dot technology. It allows for unparalleled brightness and contrast, which means you'll get perfect visibility under any light. Unlike regular pixels, quantum dots can display any color natively, instead of as a blend of red, green, and blue. Also, thanks to our quantum dot technology, the screen resolution will be three times as detailed as the best display screen that exists, no matter the size."If you want to see wha
Getting a Technology System in Modern Day Sarah's Time to Shine
"Now let's welcome the president of GAIA Technologies, Sarah O'Connor to introduce our other products," Aron said when the applause died down, then smiled at his friend as they passed each other.Sarah arrived at her position, but had to wait before she started speaking since they were still clapping. When the applause died down, she started speaking. "With the Zeus One being our first product from the smartphone line, I'd like to introduce the first product from our computer line: the Olympus."She stopped speaking and, like Aron's introduction of the phone, the screens behind her started playing a video that introduced the device before ending with an image of the laptop and desktop versions. They both had a sleek, majestic, and clean look."They, too, are powered by another of our proprietary chips—the O1, which is ten times faster than any other desktop or laptop CPU on the market." As she said that, the benchmark results were shown on the screens behind her, evoking slight gasps
Latest Chapter
TSF TRAPPIST-1
Mars, CENTCOM – System and Monitoring Control CenterIf there was a place that could be called the eyes and ears of the empire, it was here. Every sensor, every probe, and every surveillance array deployed across imperial space fed its data into this room, constructing a live picture of the empire’s territories—a real-time pulse of its vast dominion.A tall, rugged-looking man strode into the room, clad in a full ARES dress uniform. His secretary followed closely, carrying a tablet and wearing a pair of AR glasses. As he reached the railing that separated the entryway from "the pit," where analysts worked at their stations, he wasted no time."Any course changes or deviations from our calculations?" he asked.Under normal circumstances, such a question might have seemed odd—after all, over a million vessels were active across imperial space at any given moment, each represented in the ever-changing data streams. But the analyst below the railing had expected it. Without hesitation, he
CONNECT Board Meeting III
{Robert Watson of Icarus Airlines, please proceed,}Their industry closely mirrored Hermes, with the key difference being that they transported people instead of cargo. However, their expansion potential was more limited—no matter how many ships or planes they added to their fleet, the number of travelers remained relatively consistent each year. Unlike Hermes, they also faced competition, as any company with ships meeting safety standards and proper permits could enter the passenger transport market.What set Icarus Airlines apart was its exclusive service offering trans-star system travel between the Solar System and the Alpha-Proxima Centauri system. Only a handful of companies were wealthy enough to purchase ships capable of such a journey.Despite the two-year-long trip, demand remained high, thanks to VR integration. Passengers spent the journey in VR pods, allowing them to continue their work and daily activities as usual, eliminating the need for extended leave. This feature m
CONNECT Board Meeting II
Sarah began her report by presenting the financial performance of GAIA Technologies over the last fiscal year. As expected, revenues continued to grow, though at a slower pace compared to the early years following the empire's formation. The initial surge in demand had been followed by a second resurgence when the Proximians were integrated into the empire, but even that had now reached a saturation point.This was an anticipated trend—GAIA Technologies' products were so widely adopted that nearly every citizen in the empire owned at least one. The VR device, in particular, was practically mandatory, given how deeply the universal simulation had been integrated into society, offering access to countless benefits and services.One key area of financial opportunity had been the universal simulation itself, where real-world currency was allowed for transactions. Many companies had capitalized on this, leading to substantial profit avenues. However, Sarah and Aron had made a conscious dec
CONNECT Board Meeting
[A/N: I encountered some immigration issues, which made it difficult to write during that period. My apologies for the delay.]A few days later…The board meeting of Connect Enterprise, the parent company overseeing eight powerful subsidiaries, was about to commence. The subsidiaries presidents of —GAIA Technologies, Inc.; Helios Energy & Utility, Inc.; Hephaestus Industries and Manufacturing, Inc.; Hermes, Inc.; Plutus Ventures, Inc.; Icarus Airlines, Inc.; Asclepius Biotechnology, Inc.; and Coeus Foundation—had all gathered for this crucial discussion.Before the formation of the empire, ARES Security Solutions, Inc. would have been included in such a meeting. However, since its integration into the imperial government as one of the three major ministries under direct imperial oversight, it had fully transitioned from a private security firm to the official Imperial Army. Now operating under the governmental structure, its reporting lines followed those of ministries and agencies,
Gathering of Friends
“It’s been a while since we had a real outing instead of a virtual one,” Felix remarked, taking a sip from a plain, unbranded can that looked like it had just come off the assembly line.“If not for the countermeasures put in place, you wouldn’t even be able to tell the difference,” Sarah replied, mirroring his actions as she drank from an identical can. She glanced toward Aron, who was seated with them, his eyes fixed on the ceiling of the small open-roofed resting hut, lost in thought. “Besides, he’s been buried in his research for what seemed to be decades in VR time. With a mountain of discoveries still waiting for him, I doubt he even realizes how much time has passed.”Noticing that Aron remained unresponsive, seemingly unaware of their conversation, Sarah smirked. Without hesitation, she pressed her cold drink against his cheek. The sudden chill jolted him slightly, making him blink in surprise as she teased, “Your Highness, we’re talking to you.”Aron exhaled sharply before st
Trade Hub
Near Pluto’s orbit, a massive space station was in the final stages of construction. Only the finishing touches and full-scale testing remained before it could officially open for use and visitation by imperial citizens.Spanning nearly a thousand kilometers in diameter—about a third of the Moon’s size—the station looked nothing like a natural satellite. Its sleek, glossy exterior was adorned with enormous glass panels, each manufactured in space. These panels stretched for kilometers in length and width, and hundreds of meters in thickness, allowing light to pass through effortlessly. Yet, they weren’t just for aesthetics. Equipped with advanced safety features, the glass could filter heat and radiation while controlling the amount of light passing through in a precise five-centimeter grid, ranging from full transparency to complete blackout. Additionally, they were reinforced to withstand asteroid impacts, a testament to the station’s durability and the prestige of its purpose.This
STARGATE Dressing Rehearsal
Aron sat before a stack of papers containing the final experiment data. Though he was in the universal simulation, he liked to switch up how he processed information, avoiding fatigue from relying on a single medium—especially since he spent what amounted to centuries conducting experiments in accelerated simulation time.{From the tests, it works as expected,} Nova, his ever-present assistant, stated once she was sure he had finished reviewing the data."I know, but let’s do a real full-dress rehearsal," Aron replied, lifting his gaze from the papers.He always insisted on a full-scale trial before declaring any research complete. Unlike the universal simulation, where things could be conjured at will, the real world required careful logistical considerations. Even a flawless design could become an operational nightmare if mobilization wasn’t accounted for.{Okay,} Nova acknowledged, and in an instant, they both vanished from the lab, reappearing in the vast emptiness of space, far f
Discussion and Finalizations
It took Nyx several hours to sift through the vast amount of data collected before she was ready to deliver her findings.“Using the asteroid field as a natural cosmic phenomenon to mask the wormhole’s opening worked in our favor. As far as we can tell, no one in the vicinity detected it,} Nyx stated as she began her report.A scientist in the room frowned. "There were people where we opened the wormhole? What are the odds of that?"Nyx responded immediately.“While the natural occurrence of life in the galaxy is rare, remember that we are infiltrating Conclave territory. Intelligent life is abundant here. Furthermore, asteroid fields serve as valuable resource hubs for spacefaring civilizations, which greatly increases the likelihood of encountering activity.}As she spoke, the room’s environment transformed, shifting into a massive asteroid field—a direct projection of the data collected. Nyx had opted to show rather than tell, planning to let the simulation play before diving into
Tempting Fate
Crack!Had there been air to carry the sound, that would have been the noise echoing through space. Instead, there was only silence as the fabric of space fractured—a jagged crack forming for the briefest of moments.A small, round object emerged, slipping through the gap before it sealed itself shut, leaving no trace of its existence. The only evidence that anything had occurred was the lone sphere, now drifting amid the vastness of space.Roughly the size of a football, the sphere remained still for only a moment before it came to life. It scanned its surroundings, finding itself deep within an asteroid field, surrounded by tumbling rocks and frozen comet nuclei.Without hesitation, the object accelerated, weaving through the chaotic debris field with ease and with no visible propulsion method. Tiny blue sparks flickered from its surface each time it passed near an asteroid or an icy fragment, scattering briefly before fading into nothingness.It was collecting data.Its movement fo
