The staff meeting concludes. You wish your colleages a good day, and then you make your way to your office. Several days later, you think back to your meeting regarding the problems in your HR department. You schedule a brief chat with that section's manager, who assures you that things are going far more smoothly now.
A small victory, but a victory nonetheless.
Next. February trundles past, while work swamps you. Valentine's Day comes and goes with nary a flicker of romance for those unfortunate CEOs so tightly bound to their desks as you. But then, as the month's end draws near, Robert Leach reminds you that the evening of the twenty-sixth is not your own. Some time ago, Anaru Katariki accepted an invitation to attend a charity fundraiser aiding the homeless association Benedict's Friends. As his successor, it falls upon you to fulfill his obligation. In truth, you could probably get out of it. But it might prove a good opportunity to raise MetaHuman's image—and you realize you're looking forward to spending an evening eating good food and drinking fine wine, surrounded by the rich and beautiful. It's a facet of the "famous CEO" role that you've barely experienced so far.
Shopping has not been high on your list of priorities lately. Still, when you took over at MetaHuman, Leach took the liberty of buying a range of new clothes for you—high-quality items appropriate for the media personality you are increasingly becoming.
As you're changing in your spacious bathroom, you spot a curious mark on your right arm, just below your shoulder. It's a little scab, hardly larger than a freckle. Weirdly, it has an odd purple tinge to it. You pick at it, and a part of it comes away under your fingernail. The skin beneath it is an angry red.
You stare at it in the mirror a moment longer, then carry on dressing, and promptly forget all about it.
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